Studies on occurrance of EPN, their pathogenic and biotic potential properties

Occurrence of entomopathogenic nematodes (EPN) was measured in soil of five districts of Western part of Uttar Pradesh, India where eleven isolates of Steinernema abbasi, four isolates of S. siamkayai and six isolates of Heterorhabditis indica were recovered from the soils. Paper deals the virulence and reproductive potential of 13 isolates of entomopathogenic nematodes where larvae of Galleria mellonella were used as host insect. S. abbasi (isolate CS₁₅) and S. siamkayai (isolate CS₁₆) led to all in virulence as they caused highest mortality whereas lowest was recorded in S. abbasi (isolate CS₆) and S. siamkayai (isolate CS₇) isolates in the larvae of G. mellonella within 24 hrs. S. abbasi (isolate CS₁₅)and S. siamkayai (isolate CS₁₆) also revealed lowest LC₅₀ and LT₅₀ values. The range of progeny production was recorded highest in S. abbasi (isolate CS₆) (24.45±0.95×10⁴ IJs/larva) and lowest in H. indica (isolate CH₁) (13.94±0.74×10⁴ IJs/larva). The study indicated dominancy of S. abbasi, S. siamkayai and H. indica in the area and possibility of more efficacious new species/strain with high pathogenicity and reproductivity may be encountered in Western part of Uttar Pradesh.