There is a high diversity of bees in the tropics, including honey bees and stingless bees, which are the main sources for honey and other ecosystem services. In Indonesia, beekeeping practices have been developed for centuries, and they have been part of many cultural practices in many traditional communities. The objective of this research was to study the beekeeping status and managed bee diversity in Indonesia and to investigate beekeepers’ perspectives on the factors and obstacles related to beekeeping. Direct interview and online interview were conducted to gain data on bees and beekeepers. In total, 272 beekeepers were interviewed across 25 provinces. Samplings of honey bees and stingless bees were also done during direct interviews for further identification and, when possible, pollen identification. All data and specimens were then sent to IPB Bogor for compilation and identification. We recorded 22 species of bees, including 3 species of honey bees and 19 species of stingless bees, that are reared by Indonesian beekeepers, with Apis cerana and Tetragonula laeviceps as the most common species. Our research also found that the majority of beekeepers fall into the category of the younger generation (30–39 years old) with educational background mostly from senior high school. Based on the beekeepers’ perspectives, there are several obstacles to beekeeping, especially the occurrence of death of bee foragers attributed to climate, food source, and pesticides. In conclusion, there is a need to develop a strategy for beekeeping and bee conservation in Indonesia, especially for adaptation and mitigation from environmental changes with a particular focus on climate and land-use change.

Corn is an important crop after rice. Tompobulu sub-district, Maros, South Sulawesi has a wide marginal land expected to contribute to corn development. One of main pests is Ostrinia furnacalis. Beauveria bassiana Vuill is an effective biological control agent as it can be associated with part of plants as endophyte. The study focused on the effect of seed submersion mixed with liquid compost into marginal land. Corn seeds were planted in each plot with a depth of 5 cm and each hole was planted with 1 seed with a spacing of 75 x 20 cm. The fungal isolation was obtained from inoculum cadaver larvae of O. furnacalis purified on initial agar medium and propagated on corn medium. The trials were designed with a randomized block design (RBD) consisting of 6 trials (Bisi-2 seeds soaked in aquades (A); Srikandi seeds soaked in aquades (B); Bisi-2 seeds soaked in B. bassiana 106 spore/ml suspension for 24 hours (C); Srikandi seeds soaked in B. bassiana suspension 106 spores/ml for 24 hours (D); Seeds of Bisi-2 soaked in suspension B. bassiana 106 spores/ml for 24 hours + liquid fertilizer (E); and Srikandi seeds soaked in B. bassiana 106 spore/ml suspension for 24 hours + liquid fertilizer (F). The highest population of larvae and pupae of O. furnacalis in treatment B was 8.35 and the lowest population in treatment E was 3.05. There were no larvae infected by B. bassiana fungus in the treatment of seeds soaked with distilled water. However, larvae infected with B. bassiana fungus was found in the treatment of seeds soaked in B. bassiana suspension 106 spores/ml or added with watering liquid fertilizer. The highest weight of seed weight in Bisi-2 seeds soaked with suspension B. bassiana 106 spores/ml.

Indonesia has an abundant production of fruits and vegetables that can satisfy the demands of domestic and export markets. One of the most serious problems in fruit exports is the damage and contamination caused by fruit fly attacks to horticultural produce. Taiwan government rejects 13 types of fruit and vegetable commodities from Indonesia due to infestation by several species of fruit fly, including Bactrocera papayae, B. zonata, and B. musae. The research was carried out in Turikale, Maros District, South Sulawesi, Indonesia. Various fruits and vegetables serving as hosts of fruit flies, including Capsicum annum (chilli), Solanum lycopersium (tomato), Avverhoa carambola (star fruit), Psidium guajava (guava), Artocarpus heterophylllus (jackfruit), are cultivated in the area. The study was initiated to identify the fruit fly species associated with vegetable and fruit crops in the study site. Fruits and vegetables attacked by fruit flies were collected from the field and then separately kept in plastic containers in the laboratory until the adults emerged. The emerging flies were identified under a dissecting microscope based on the identification keys. Five species of fruit flies belonging to the Genus Bactorcera emerged from the collected fruits and vegetables, namely:

This study aimed to illuminate the relationship of population density of larvae on the level of leaf damage and declining seed yields in some varieties of soybeans that have been implemented in Maros Experimental Garden from April to August, 2016. The experiment consisted of four population densities, i.e., 0, 2, 4 and 6 larvae instar-3 per plant and three soybean varieties, i.e., Anjasmoro, Argomulyo and Grobogan. The experiment was conducted in split plot design with varieties as main plot and population densities of larvae as subplot treatment with five replications. The results showed that the damage attack highest for Anjasmoro from 20.19% to 28.61%, Argomulyo from 14.68% to 21.18% and Grobogan from 13.28% to 18.00%. So the seed yields, the highest for Argomulyo 14.50 g/plant and lowest was for Grobogan 12.55 g/plant. The relation between population density of larvae and leaf damage intensity of Spodoptera litura in three days after investation (DAI) follows an equation, Anjasmoro, Y = 8.587x and r = 0.9583, Argomulyo, Y = 6.251x and r = 0.9558, and Grobogan, Y = 5.45x and r = 0.9459. The relationship between larval density population and the level of leaf damage in 6 DAI follows a regression equation, Anjasmoro, Y = 8.174x and r = 0.96107, Argomulyo, Y = 6.392x and r = 0.9609, and Grobogan, Y = 5.977x and r = 0.9626. The relationship between larvae population density and the level of leaf damage in 9 DAI follows a regression equation, Anjasmoro, Y = 5.8879x and r = 0.9358, Argomulyo, Y = 4.3671x and r = 0.954685, and Grobogan, Y = 3.917x and r = 0.9467. The declining seed yield caused by addition one larvae of S. litura, the highest on Anjasmoro variety (0.80 g/plant or 6.04%) and the lowest on Argomulyo (0.65 g/plant or 4.48%).

Entomopathogenic fungi have been proved controlling plant pests, and most of the entomopathogenic fungi isolated from the agroecosystem. The research was carried out to characterize the entomopathogenic fungi diversity associated with different agroecosystem on a different location in South Sulawesi, Indonesia. Fungi of rice field ecosystems were found more diverse than on dryland ecosystems, and the genus was Fusarium species, Aspergillus species, Rhizopus species, Trichoderma species, Penicillium species, Rhizoctonia species and Metharizium species. Moreover, Fusarium species and Rhizopus species were the most frequent genus isolated from rice field ecosystem, while on dryland ecosystems, the fungus of Metharizium species found more frequent than Fusarium species and Aspergillus species According to a geographical location on rice field ecosystems. The number of fungi isolated on the regency of Gowa more numerous than regency of Sidrap, Takalar, and Pinrang. Meanwhile, on the dryland ecosystems, three locations were the city of Makassar, the regency of Maros, and the regency of Polman. Among three areas, the regency of Maros founded more fungi than regency of Polman and Makassar. This study exhibits the diversity of fungi on the rice field, and dryland ecosystems were quite different.