*2.7.1 (a) Entomopathogenic bacteria*

Entomopathogenic fungi are often relied on as important components of integrated pest management in tropical agriculture, either as biopesticides or as naturally occurring soil microbes conserved in the environment. As pest control products, they are becoming very significant, especially in mosquito larval control. The entomopathogenic fungi, *Metarhizium anisopliae* and *Beauveria bassiana,* have demonstrated effectiveness against *anopheline* larvae in the laboratory, but effective formulations from such fungi, which are not sensitive to UV radiation, high temperatures and water not are needed [40, 41]. They are being manufactured and used in Kenya [11]. Metarhizium *robertsii*, formerly known as M. *anisopliae*, and even earlier, as Entomophthora *anisopliae* (*basionym*) is a fungus that grows naturally in soils throughout the world and causes disease in various insects by acting as a parasitoid [42]. A parasitoid is an insect whose larvae live as parasites in a host that eventually kill its host (typically another insect). Many isolates of parasitoids, which can be injected or exposed to insect hosts, have long been recognized as new Metarhizium species, such as M. *robertsii*, M. *maju*s and M. *acridum*, respectively. Metarhizium *taii* was placed in M. var. *anisopliae*, but has now been described as M. *guizhouense*. The commercially important isolates, M.a.43 (or F52, Met52, etc.), which infect Coleoptera and other insect orders have now been assigned to Metarhizium *brunneum*. This technique, which involves using various fungi has been practiced in other countries and is being used in Kenya, as various products have been registered by the PCPB and manufactured by some local companies [11].
