Management Practices for Control of European Wireworms in Canada

Summary

Significant losses in crop yield, quality and marketability have been attributed to wireworms, a pest of growing concern and widening distribution in Nova Scotia and across Canada.
While the Maritime Provinces harbour indigenous wireworm species, three species introduced to North America from European ship ballast cause the lion's share of damage.
The destructive larvae of these three species, Agriotes lineatus, A. obscurus, and A. sputator, persist in the soil for several years, feeding on the roots of host plants and causing significant reductions in the yield and quality of economically important crops. Root crops such as potatoes and carrots are particularly susceptible because damage (holes produced by feeding larvae) to the new tubers and carrots can appreciably reduce quality, yield and storability.
To control this pest, the adult must be deterred from entering and depositing eggs in the field, the larvae must be deterred from attacking the cash crop and/or the larvae themselves must be controlled. This is a difficult challenge due to the lifecycle, feeding preferences and movement habits of the wireworm.