Effect of Moisture on Efficacy of Selected Insecticide Dusts Against the Common Bed Bug,Cimex lectularius(Hemiptera: Cimicidae)
- 3 June 2020
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Oxford University Press (OUP) in Journal of Economic Entomology
- Vol. 113 (4), 1933-1939
- https://doi.org/10.1093/jee/toaa122
Abstract
Insecticide dust formulations are considered as more effective for controlling the common bed bug, Cimex lectularius (L) (Hemiptera: Cimicidae), than residual sprays. Various environmental factors may affect the efficacy of insecticide dusts. In this study, we evaluated the effect of moisture on the efficacy of three insecticide dusts against C. lectularius. Moisture was created using two methods: applying steam to insecticide dust-treated tiles and aging insecticide dust-treated tiles in chambers with various levels of relative humidity (RH). In the steam treatment, three insecticides including Cimexa (92.1% amorphous silica gel), Alpine (0.25% dinotefuran, 95% diatomaceous earth), and Tempo (1% cyfluthrin) were evaluated. Exposure to steam significantly reduced the efficacy of all three insecticide dusts. Among the three insecticides, the efficacy of Cimexa was significantly higher than Alpine and Tempo. In the different RH treatments, Cimexa treated tiles that were aged under different (52, 75, and 100%) RH conditions for 1 and 2 mo caused significantly lower mortality to C. lectularius than nonaged Cimexa. We conclude that both, a short period of exposure to steam and long-period aging in a moist environment, can significantly reduce the efficacy of insecticide dusts. Moisture needs to be considered when applying insecticide dusts for controlling bed bug infestations.Keywords
Funding Information
- National Institute of Food and Agriculture
- U.S. Department of Agriculture
- New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station (D-08-08127-01-20)
This publication has 25 references indexed in Scilit:
- Bed bugs evolved unique adaptive strategy to resist pyrethroid insecticidesScientific Reports, 2013
- Moving From the Old to the New: Insecticide Research on Bed Bugs since the ResurgenceInsects, 2011
- Monitoring of Internal Moisture Loads in Residential BuildingsSSRN Electronic Journal, 2010
- Widespread distribution of knockdown resistance mutations in the bed bug, Cimex lectularius (Hemiptera: Cimicidae), populations in the United StatesArchives of Insect Biochemistry and Physiology, 2010
- Bedbugs - back from the brinkPesticide Outlook, 2001
- The effect of grain moisture content and temperature on the efficacy of diatomaceous earths from different geographical locations against stored-product beetlesJournal of Stored Products Research, 2000
- ReviewDiatomaceous earths, a group of natural insecticidesJournal of Stored Products Research, 1998
- Action of amorphous silica dusts on the German cockroach Blattella germanica (Linneaus) (Orthoptera: Blattidae)Bulletin of Entomological Research, 1990
- Sorptive Dusts for Pest ControlAnnual Review of Entomology, 1971
- Saturated Solutions For the Control of Humidity in Biological ResearchEcology, 1960