Chile seeks new tools against "Lobesia botrana"

07/11/2016

In order to look for new tools to combat the vine moth or Lobesia botrana In the urban areas of the country, especially in houses with vines, the Association of Fruit Exporters of Chile AG (ASOEX) and the Foundation for Fruit Development (FDF), together with the Agricultural and Livestock Service (SAG), officially started on Friday 4 in November in a sector of Quilicura the release of copies of Trichogramma pretiosum, a tiny insect present in Chile and that is a natural enemy of the Lobesia botrana when parasitizing their eggs.

This release is part of an experimental pilot plan to control the Lobesia botrana at the urban level, and is financed by ASOEX and executed by FDF, being one of the actions contemplated in the National Program of Lobesia botrana (PNLb) for the 2016-2017 season, which heads the SAG. For this reason, in this first liberation the national director of SAG, Ángel Sartori, was present; the president of ASOEX, Ronald Bown, and the president of FDF, Francisco Letelier.

How does the system work?

As explained by David Castro, Head of the Quarantine Entomology Area of FDF, "the project contemplates the release of 3.000 weekly insects in 10 houses with domestic vines from the urban sector in the communes of Quilicura and Conchalí, process that will be carried out during 28 weeks, in order to cover the three flight cycles of the Lobesia botrana".

This is how a device will be installed in a vineyard of each selected house, which will be controlled by FDF professionals and supervised by the SAG. "The process consists in the installation of a release device, in addition to the placement of Lobesia sentinel eggs and an emergency indicator tube of Trichogramma pretiosum"Commented Castro.

Regarding the action of this insect of the genus Trichogramma (named for its almost microscopic size), Castro pointed out that it parasitizes the eggs of Lobesia botrana, reducing the possibility of moth larvae emerging. «In terms of results, a percentage of up to an 56% of parasitism has been observed in laboratory tests and field cages.«added the researcher.

news_8 Grisel Monje, executive director of the National Program Lobesia botrana SAG, explained that "This technique allows the use of a biological control of the flood type, where plates with eggs of Trichogramma pretiosum are installed - a species that is present in Chile, is not introduced - and releasing this material week by week. With this we are going to reach urban areas, where intervention with other tools such as chemical controls or cluster or grapevine starts is not well received. However, a biological controller is very friendly, has no effect on human health, is completely innocuous and therefore does not generate resistance on the part of citizens".

The results may be evaluated once the three cycles that the plague has in Chile are finished, but it is expected that by means of this flooding technique the population of Lobesia botrana in a gradual way, by decreasing the percentages of viable eggs of the pest.

A joint effort

The national director of the SAG, Ángel Sartori, highlighted "the effort of the private sector in this initiative. What is trying to be done is a biological control, along with what is already being done experimentally with the use of the Sterile Insect Technique, with the control through the installation of sexual confusers and the application of chemical products. This is a measure more oriented to the urban environment. I have always said it: the joint work between the public sector and the private sector is very important to control and later eradicate this plague".

For his part, the general manager of ASOEX, Miguel Canala-Echeverría, stressed the importance of intervening in urban sectors to control the Lobesia, since it is found in farms but also in populated areas with presence of vines. "We can control the pest with chemical applications at a productive level, but coming to a house or entering a private property and carrying out applications of chemical products is impractical. For this reason, together with the SAG, we look for alternatives that are friendlier to the public. This has generated two projects that have been developed in a complementary way, the Sterile Insect Technique and biological control, which go in parallel to everything we are doing at the production level."He explained.

Source: Freshplaza.es