Differential susceptibilities of two closely-related stored product pests, the red flour beetle (Tribolium castaneum) and the confused flour beetle (Tribolium confusum), to five selected insecticides

Abstract

The red flour beetle (Tribolium castaneum Herbst) and the confused flour beetle (Tribolium confusum Jacquelin du Val) are among the most commonly encountered insects infesting stored food, but their susceptibilities to different insecticides often differ significantly, which complicates efforts to manage populations in milling and processing facilities. In this study, the susceptibilities of T. castaneum and T. confusum late-stage larvae to five selected insecticides, esfenvalerate, pyrethrins, dichlorvos, methoprene and pyriproxyfen, were assessed with and without synergists using topical applications. In four-day bioassays (without flour) with dichlorvos, esfenvalerate and pyrethrins, T. castaneum larvae were less susceptible (low larval mortality) to dichlorvos and esfenvalerate than T. confusum, whereas the reverse was true for treatment with pyrethrins. Pre-treatment with one of three synergists, piperonyl butoxide (PBO, cytochrome P450 monooxygenase inhibitor), S,S,S-tributyl phosphorotrithioate (DEF, esterase inhibitor), or diethyl maleate (DEM, glutathione S-transferase inhibitor), suggested involvement of esterases in the detoxification of dichlorvos and pyrethrins, and cytochrome P450 monooxygenases in the detoxification of esfenvalerate in both species. Interestingly, pre-treatment with some synergists increased the toxicity of insecticides in only one species: DEM and DEF increased the toxicity of dichlorvos to T. castaneum, whereas only DEF increased dichlorvos toxicity to T. confusum. In 28-day bioassays with larvae treated with each of two insect growth regulators (IGRs), methoprene and pyriproxifen, T. confusum was the more tolerant species. All T. castaneum died in either the larval or pupal stages with either IGR. In contrast, only pyriproxyfen caused complete mortality in T. confusum larvae, and even the highest dose of methoprene allowed nearly 70% of T. confusum larvae to pupate, and 4.5% of adults to emerge. Our results show that although these two species are closely related, they display very different susceptibilities to different insecticides, and different metabolic detoxification mechanisms may contribute to their differential insecticide susceptibilities.