2019 Integrated Pest Management Innovation Lab Annual Report (2018-2019)

In FY 2019, the IPM Innovation Lab concentrated on developing technologies and management options for fall armyworm (FAW), Spodoptera frugiperda Smith (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) in Africa and Asia. This pest was introduced to Nigeria by accident in early 2016, and by 2017, it had reached most of sub-Saharan Africa. In May 2018, it was detected in the Sivamogga hills in the southern part of India. Since then, it has spread to Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, Myanmar, China, Thailand, Indonesia, Cambodia, Laos, South Korea, Japan, the Philippines, and Taiwan. The IPM IL addresses fall armyworm with emphasis on biological control, integrating it with other compatible technologies. Currently, steps are being taken to multiply and field release two naturalized parasitoids in Asia and Africa, Trichogramma spp. (Hym: Trichogrammatidae) and Telenomus remus Nixon (Hym.: Platygastridae), both known to be effective in suppressing the population of FAW in Central and South America. IPM IL has continued to transfer technologies developed within its eligible host countries to the rest of the globe by participating in and organizing symposia and workshops in national, regional, international conferences and meetings. In October 2018, IPM IL participated in the international workshop on FAW management in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. At the same time, surveys were conducted in maize fields in Ethiopia and the occurrence of the egg parasitoid, T. remus on eggs of FAW was confirmed. An awareness workshop on possible invasion of FAW into Nepal was conducted in Kathmandu, Nepal in November 2018. Based on the unconfirmed reports of the occurrence of FAW in Nepal in May 2019, IPM IL participated in an awareness and management workshop organized by the USAID mission in Nepal.