Steinernema feltiae Parasitic roundworms
Just like humans, animals can fall victim to parasites. Steinernema feltiae are tiny roundworms – also called nematodes – that live parasitically inside insects. They use their hosts as a source of food and a place to complete their life cycle.
Image: Wim van Egmond
At home in an insect
Female Steinernema can lay up to 200 eggs, and multiple generations of nematodes can grow up inside a single host. When food becomes scarce, the infectious larvae leave the host and search the soil for new victims.
They enter insects through natural openings and live off the insect’s internal tissues. Once grown, the cycle begins all over again.
Greenhouse guardians
Thanks to their rapid reproduction and wide range of potential hosts, Steinernema nematodes are popular allies in biological pest control. In greenhouses, they’re used to combat fly larvae, thrips and caterpillars.
Growers can simply add them to irrigation water, where they target insect larvae hiding in the soil. Biocontrol with nematodes offers a sustainable alternative to chemical pesticides.
Partners in crime
But the nematodes don’t work alone. They live in symbiosis with a very specific type of bacteria – most often Xenorhabdus nematophilus. These bacteria are released inside the insect host and produce toxins that kill it within one to two days. This not only helps the nematodes digest the insect from within, but also ensures both partners thrive.
Discover the invisible world
Steinernema feltiae is just one of the many microbes you can encounter at ARTIS-Micropia. Each plays a unique and vital role in life on Earth.
Come face to face with the microbes that shape the world.