Behavioral characterization and alternative control methods of the bamboo borer [Dinoderus minutus Fabricius (Coleoptera: Bostrichidae)]

Abstract

Bamboo wood is a widely used raw material for the manufacture of special furniture and handicraft products, and can also be used in construction and architecture. In Brazil, the usage of this material has gained great space in the last decades. However, it can suffer from the attack of the bamboo borer [Dinoderus minutus Fabricius (Coleoptera: Bostrichidae)], causing damages and making the use of this wood unviable. Hence, the purpose of this work was to verify the behavior of D. minutus in culms of three bamboo species (Bambusa vulgaris, B. vulgaris var. vittata e B. multiplex) in two seasons of the year, one dry and one rainy season, in addition to testing alternative methods of insect control. In relation to the behavior, we verified the damages caused by the larvae from the oviposition of D. minutus in nodes and internodes of the bamboo species. While the alternative control methods were based on the spraying of the bacterium Proteus mirabilis, as an entomopathogenic agent, on B. vulgaris nodes, and the immersion treatment of nodes of same bamboo species in aqueous extract of Dracaena arborea leaves, and in vinasse. In relation to the insect behavior, there was a higher activity (consumption and reproduction) during the rainy season and a higher attack preference for the species B. vulgaris. Regarding the alternative control methods, it was verified a better performance of the treatments with P. mirabilis and D. arborea, since they provided a mortality index superior to 90% of the insects.