Page 13 - National Poultry Newspaper

Using natural fungi to control lesser mealworm in Australian chicken sheds
NEW research supported by AgriFutures Australia is optimising the use of an alternative control meas- ure for the lesser meal- worm based on live fungi.
“We’re running the tri- als through the seasons so we can compare the fungi’s impact on the lesser meal- worm populations in winter to what happens in warmer months.
in the litter and the lesser mealworm builds up resist- ance to them over time.
“We hope that the com- bined results of the field and laboratory work will attract a commercial part- ner interested in producing a mycopesticide that will be effective for use against lesser mealworm and have a low environmental impact.”
optimise a new natural con- trol method for lesser meal- worm but also increase sus- tainable practices in chicken meat production,” Ms Lane said.
The lesser mealworm, also known as darkling beetle, is a common insect- pest to the chicken meat industry,duetothedamage it can cause to the structure of chicken sheds through tunnelling and its ability to carry pathogens.
“The initial results look promising.
An additional objective of this latest research project is to test the potential of using the mycopesticide in con- junction with insecticides to reduce overall chemical usage and maximise control oflessermealwormpopula- tions.
“As consumers want more information about the prov- enance of their food, it’s more important than ever toexplorenaturaloptions for pest control and main- tain the consumer confi- dence that makes chicken the number one consumed meat in Australia.”
Lesser mealworms are often found in poultry production systems where deep litter and open floor housing provide optimal survival and reproductive conditions.
there’s more research to be done.”
nary laboratory trials to see whether the mycopesticide can work together with the insecticides currently ap- proved for use to provide a better overall control ef- fect,” Mr Rice said.
Following on from pre- liminary research that de- veloped a proof-of-concept for non-toxic fungus-based pesticides – called mycope- sticides – to control lesser mealworm populations, new research is underway to optimise the use of myco- pesticides for this purpose.
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Leading the current re- search project is Queens- land’s Department of Agri- culture and Fisheries tech- nical officer Steven Rice.
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“What we’re doing now is testing the mycopesticide under various conditions, including different litter use practices and different floor types in meat chicken sheds,” Mr Rice said.
“We’re conducting field trials, currently at two farms in the Caboolture area, to compare the mycopesticide in full litter replacement and partial litter reuse systems.
www.poultrynews.com.au
National Poultry Newspaper, August 2021 – Page 13
“The mycopesticide ap-
pears to reduce lesser
mealworm populations un-
der both litter systems, but “We’re doing prelimi-
AgriFutures chicken meat programresearchmanager Annie Lane said the de- velopment of an effective fungal-based control for the lesser mealworm has the potential to significant- ly benefit the Australian chicken meat industry.
Approved insecticides are currently used to control the lesser mealworm pest.
“With this research we have the chance to not only
Read more about this project at agrifutures.com. au/rural-industries/chicken- meat/
Queensland’s Department of Agriculture and Fisheries technical officer Steven Rice is leading the research into optimising the use of an alternative control meas- ure for the lesser mealworm based on live fungi.
However, insecticides potentially leave residues
We are looking for a fulltime:
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What we’re looking for is a new colleague who:
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