The use of earwigs is one of the subjects of a new research project by the National Crop Protection Center, College of Agriculture and Food Science, UP Los Baños in the Philippines. The project aims to manage fall armyworm using biological control agents (BCAs) like nucleopolyhedrosis virus (NPV), entomopathogenic fungi, and earwigs. Euborellia annulipes (Lucas), commonly known as ring-legged earwig is a promising biological control agent against fall armyworm. Under laboratory conditions, it was observed that adult E. annulipes can prey and fully consume a significant number of fall armyworm larvae at different instar. E. annulipes is a very voracious feeder compared to smaller Euborellia annulata (Fabr.). At the moment, field efficacy trial of E. annulipes against fall armyworm is being carried out.
Adult male (left) and female (right) Euborellia annulipes.