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BACKGROUND: Alternatives to neonicotinoids against cereal aphids are needed to mitigate aphid resistance and non‐target effects. The emulsifiable oil formulations of two Beauveria bassiana strains, namely Bb registered as a mycoinsecticide and TBb overexpressing an endogenous virulence factor, were tested for seasonal control of cereal aphids at the elongating (April 7) to milk ripening (May 12) stages of winter wheat crop in Yuhang, Zhejiang. Each of three field trials consisted of blank control and the treatments (three randomized 100‐m2 plots per capita) of each fungal strain sprayed biweekly at rates of 1.0 × 1013 and 1.5 × 1013 conidia ha−1 and 10% imidacloprid WP sprayed biweekly at a label rate. RESULTS: Tiller infestation percentage and aphid density in the 5‐week field trials after the first spray were reduced to 18.7–22.4% and 9.1–12.4 aphids per tiller in the fungal treatments, and 12.8–25.3% and 2.8–20.9 aphids per tiller in the chemical treatment, contrasting with 49.2–60.3% and 37.1–108.5 aphids per tiller in the control. Percent control efficacies (±SD) computed with weekly aphid densities over the period averaged 84.0 ± 1.6 and 85.3 ± 1.8 versus 78.0 ± 4.0 and 79.9 ± 3.2 in the high‐rate versus low‐rate treatments of Bb and TBb, respectively, and 84.5 ± 7.8 in the chemical treatment. Imidacloprid showed faster kill action but more variable efficacy than the fungal treatments throughout the trials. CONCLUSION: Either Bb or TBb formulation competes with imidacloprid in reducing percent infestation and aphid density. The overall efficacy was significantly higher in the treatments of TBb than of Bb. © 2024 Society of Chemical Industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: The control of rice planthoppers (RPH) in Asian countries has relied upon chemical insecticides for several decades. The reliance no longer continues in the rice–aquaculture coculture and rotation systems emerging as high-profit agriculture in Southern China because chemical control is prohibited in these systems to prevent aquaculture products from contamination with chemical residues. In this field study, the RPH population in three rice–shrimp rotation paddy fields was effectively controlled for four weeks at the critical tillering to flowing stages after two fungal insecticides were sprayed twice at the recommended rate. For either fungal insecticide, the sprays applied after 5:00 p.m. to avoid solar UV irradiation were consistently more efficacious against the RPH population than those before 10:00 a.m. These results indicate the feasibility of fungal insecticides for RPH control in the rice–shrimp rotation fields and the importance of timing the application of fungal insecticides to avoid solar UV exposure for enhanced RPH control during the summer months. Thechemical control of rice planthoppers (RPH)is prohibited in annual rice–shrimp rotation paddy fields. Here, the fungal insecticides Beauveria bassiana ZJU435 and Metarizhium anisoplae CQ421 were tested for control of RPH populations dominated by Nilaparvata lugens in three field trials. During four-week field trials initiated from the harsh weather of high temperatures and strong sunlight, the rice crop at the stages from tillering to flowering was effectively protected by fungal sprays applied at 14-day intervals. The sprays of either fungal insecticide after 5:00 p.m. (solar UV avoidance) suppressed the RPH population better than those before 10 a.m. The ZJU435 and CQ421 sprays for UV avoidance versus UV exposure resulted in mean control efficacies of 60% and 56% versus 41% and 45% on day 7, 77% and 78% versus 63% and 67% on day 14, 84% and 82% versus 80% and 79% on day 21, and 84% and 81% versus 79% and 75 on day 28, respectively. These results indicate that fungal insecticides can control RPH in the rice–shrimp rotation fields and offer a novel insight into the significance of solar-UV-avoiding fungal application for improved pest control during sunny summers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]