Fitness index and lethal time of fall armyworm on Bt corn

Abstract

The objective of this work was to evaluate the fitness index and lethal time of fall armyworm [Spodoptera frugiperda (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)] populations on Bt corn expressing the Cry1Ab, Cry1F, Cry1A.105/Cry2Ab2, and Vip3Aa20 proteins. Three bioassays were conducted with larvae collected at the municipality of Inhaúma, in the state of Minas Gerais, and at the municipality of Sinop, in the state of Mato Grosso, Brazil. Larvae from these populations were fed with leaves of non‑Bt and Bt corn. The following variables were evaluated: larval survival, pupae mass, and larval development period. Then, the fitness indexes and lethal time of these populations were calculated. For lethal time analysis, mortality data of a population collected from Cry1F Bt corn in the municipality of Piumhi, in the state of Minas Gerais, were also used. The Cry1Ab Bt corn showed a limited but durable efficiency. The Cry1A.105/Cry2Ab2 and Vip3Aa20 Bt corn reduced S. frugiperda performance, respectively, to less than 5 and 0%, regardless of the origin of the colony. The population from Sinop showed high larval performance in Cry1F Bt corn, showing its resistance to this protein and a certain level of fitness cost. The lethal time can be a variable that indicates evolution of resistance, since it is greater for populations with greater fitness.