Melon thrips, Thrips palmi Karny (Thysanoptera: Thripidae) is a worldwide polyphagous pest. The management of this pest have mainly relied on chemical agents. However, the overuse is harmful to the environment and results in insects resistance. Therefore, alternative eco-friendly control methods that have different mode of action, such as biological control, are necessary to overcome the current issue. In this study, we isolated entomopathogenic fungi from Korean soil, and characterized them via morphological and molecular techniques and pathogenicity assay against Tenebrio molitor larvae. The isolated fungi were screened for virulence against T. palmi under laboratory conditions and the results were used to establish a thrips-pathogenic fungal library. The highly virulent isolates were selected and further characterized for optimum culture conditions and application as biopesticide in the field.

• Dongwei Li(Department of Agricultural Biology, College of Agriculture & Life Sciences, Chonbuk National University)
• Sihyeon Kim(Department of Agricultural Biology, College of Agriculture & Life Sciences, Chonbuk National University)
• Se Jin Lee(Department of Agricultural Biology, College of Agriculture & Life Sciences, Chonbuk National University)
• Mi Rong Lee(Department of Agricultural Biology, College of Agriculture & Life Sciences, Chonbuk National University)
• Jong Cheol Kim(Department of Agricultural Biology, College of Agriculture & Life Sciences, Chonbuk National University)
• So Eun Park(Department of Agricultural Biology, College of Agriculture & Life Sciences, Chonbuk National University)
• Tae Young Shin(Department of Agricultural Biology, College of Agriculture & Life Sciences, Chonbuk National University)
• Jae Su Kim(Department of Agricultural Biology, College of Agriculture & Life Sciences, Chonbuk National University)