38th Annual Meeting of the Society for Invertebrate Pathology

Ecological studies with entomopathogenic nematodes have been ongoing since their initial discovery in the late 1920s. Most early ecological studies had an applied aspect with emphasis on nematode (i.e., Steinernema glaseri) persistence after field application for control of Japanese beetle larvae. In the 1980s, persistence studies continued with the commercial development of several nematode species, but it became increasing important to study the behavior of these nematodes and their interactions with other organisms in the environment. Accordingly, laboratory studies on nematodes in response to abiotic (moisture, temperature, soil type) and biotic (antagonists, host cues, other entomopathogens) factors were conducted. Dispersal studies showed that nematode species had different behaviors which led to the findings that some nematode species had a sit-and-wait, an intermediate, or a widely foraging strategy. These results demonstrated that the right nematode species had to be applied against a particular pest species. However, much of the research has been focused on only a handful of nematode species and the ecology and behavior of other species need to be elucidated. In addition, although some basic field studies with these nematodes have been conducted, a greater emphasis on population dynamics and factors that initiate nematode epizootics in insect populations is needed.