Response of a red clone of Myzus persicae (Hemiptera: Aphididae) to sublethal concentrations of imidacloprid in the laboratory and greenhouse

Abstract

Pest resurgence following a pesticide application may occur owing to a stimulatory (hormetic) response to sublethal insecticide concentrations. The objective of the present study was to examine the potential for a greenhouse-derived red clone of Myzus persicae to exhibit resurgence owing to a hormetic response following a systemic imidacloprid treatment in a bell pepper greenhouse. No differences in mortality and fecundity were observed among apterous adults exposed to sublethal imidacloprid concentrations on excised pepper leaves fed aqueous solutions of imidacloprid. Survival of first-generation progeny was negatively affected by imidacloprid exposure, yet surviving progeny exhibited no differences in development rates or fecundity from progeny of adults unexposed to imidacloprid. Aphid mortality declined most rapidly in clip cages on pepper leaves at the top of the pepper canopy as compared with leaves present at the middle or bottom of the pepper canopy. Imidacloprid decays rapidly in mature pepper plants, resulting in sublethal concentrations in the upper canopy in as little as 4 weeks. Sublethal insecticide concentrations have been implicated in the resurgence of pest populations; however, exposure to sublethal doses of imidacloprid are unlikely to result in pesticide-induced resurgence of the M. persicae aphid clone examined in this study.