Foliar Persistence and Residual Activity of Tebufenozide Against Spruce Budworm Larvae

Abstract

A field study was conducted to investigate the persistence of tebufenozide in white spruce foliage. An aqueous suspension concentrate formulation, RH-5992 2F, was sprayed over single trees at three dosage rates, 35, 70 and 140 g of the active ingredient (AI), in 2·0 litre ha−1, using ground application equipment. Foliage was collected at different intervals of time up to 64 days after treatment and tebufenozide residues were measured by high-performance liquid chromatography. Foliage was also fed to laboratory-reared 4th- and 6th-instar spruce budworm (Choristoneura fumiferana Clemens). The data indicated that tebufenozide residues in foliage declined with time according to first-order kinetics. The average rate-constant and half-life of disappearance (DT50) were 0·0340 and 20·45 days, respectively. Larval mortality declined gradually, corresponding to the residues, but was still appreciable (49 to 70%) when the larvae were fed with foliage collected 64 days after treatment. The amount of foliage consumed by the larvae decreased when foliar residues of tebufenozide increased, thus indicating anti-feedant activity of the chemical. The LD50 values for both instars were similar and averagedc.25 ng per insect, but the LD90 values were significantly lower for 4th-instar than for 6th-instar, at 63·6 and 96·1 ng per insect respectively. This implies that, theoretically, at a foliar concentration of 1·0 μg tebufenozide g−1 foliage (fresh wt), the spruce budworm larva needs to consume 65 to 100 mg of foliage in 10 days to cause mortality in about 90% of a population of the insect.