Food choice experiment with F. proliferatum-infected grains

Wheat grains were soaked in distilled water for 18 h at room temperature. 20 g of soaked grains with 5 ml water were autoclaved in 100 ml Erlenmeyer flask for 20 min at 121°C, inoculated with 2 ml F. proliferatum conidia (1.3×10⁶ spores/ml) and incubated for 7 days to ensure complete colonization. Control wheat grains were treated in a same way without inoculation. Food preference of mealworm beetle T. molitor was investigated in Petri dishes of a diameter 142 mm marked to generate four equal sectors in the form of pie slices. 6 g of non-colonized wheat grains each were placed into opposing sectors of the plates and 6 g grains colonized with F. proliferatum to the other sectors. Ten T. molitor beetles were placed into the center of the dishes. After 20 min in dark, beetles in each sector were counted. Controls were prepared in the same way with all four sectors filled with autoclaved not infected grains and two opposite sectors randomly selected for counting. Ten replicates with 10 animals each were performed and the experiment was repeated twice.