Prospects for Integrated Control of the Colorado Potato Beetle (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) Using Perillus Bioculatus (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) and Various Pesticides
Endosulfan, oxamyl, and esfenvalarate all were highly toxic to Perillus bioculatus (F.), a predator of the Colorado potato beetle, Leptinotarsa deeemlineata (Say). Toxicity assays consisted of topical application to eggs, nymphs, and adults; exposure of nymphs to treated foliage; and ingestion by P. bioeulatus nymphs of Colorado potato beetle larvae previously exposed to treated foliage. P. bioculatus egg hatch was unaffected by topical application of the pesticides. Topical application of neem seed extract to third-instar nymphs delayed molting and caused deformities after the molt in some insects, whereas the synergist piperonyl butoxide and the botanical insecticide rotenone caused significant mortality. Cryolite (sodium fluoaluminate), Bacillus thuringiensis var. san diego, horticultural oil, insecticidal soap, and three fungicides (chlorothalonil, rnaneb, and meta laxly) caused very little predator mortality at any life stage tested. Acontrol program using these materials would likely be compatible with the natural buildup of P. bioeulatus populations or with augmentative release of this predator. In a small-plot field study, release of P. bioeulatus in conjunction with bacterial insecticides provided significant control of Colorado potato beetles for at least 2 wk, suppressing larval populations by 76% compared with plots treated only with bacterial insecticides.