Pesticides
ULV formulations of organophosphates and pyrethroids continue to be the primary forms of control. Somalia has recently used insect growth regulators and biopesticides (Metarhizium acridum1) on a large scale. Emulsifiable concentrate (EC) formulations are also widely in use, particularly in Iran. [1] Priority list of insecticides to be used against locusts rated by the Locust Pesticide Referee Group (LPRG), 1 is the most prioritized.
Related pages: [[Environmental impact of pesticide] • [[History of pesticides and locust contro]
Types of pesticides
Carbamates
Similar in characteristics and action to organophosphates. Carbamates are no longer listed by the Locust Pesticide Referee Group (LPRG) because of environmental and health concerns [1]
Bendiocarb
Bendiocarb is a fast-acting [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbamate#Carbamate_insecticides carbamate insecticide. It has been used in ultra-low volume (ULV) formulations, as dust, emulsifiable concentrate (EC), and as bait. Bendiocarb is commonly known by the brand Ficam DTM and was requested for voluntary cancellation in 1999 by its manufacturer AgrEvo. [2] Although its use continued, it is no longer approved by the Locust Pesticide Referee Group.[1]
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbaryl Carbary
Used in insecticide bait (e.g. https://www.peacockcorp.com/insecticides-1)
Benzoylurea insect growth regulators (IGRs)
Insect growth regulators (IGRs) have shown promise in the control of locust populations pared with synthetic insecticides or biopesticides. IGRs are chemicals that disrupt the normal development and growth of insects, including locusts, by interfering with their hormonal systems. These substances can affect various stages of the locust life cycle, such as egg hatching, nymphal development, and maturation into adult insects.
One commonly used IGR is the juvenile hormone analog (JHA), which mimics the action of natural juvenile hormones in insects. When applied to locusts, JHAs can disrupt the molting process and inhibit the development of nymphs into mature adults. This ultimately reduces the reproductive potential and population growth of locusts.
Another type of IGR used in locust control is chitin synthesis inhibitors (CSIs). These chemicals interfere with the production of chitin, a vital component of the insect exoskeleton. Exposure, through dermal contact or primarily ingestion, prevents larvae from molting properly due to a lack of chitin in the new cuticle and impedes the growth and development of locust nymphs. This inhibition of chitin synthesis primarily impacts immature insects, but can also affect other arthropods and some fungi. [3]
IGRs offer several advantages in locust control. They are highly selective, targeting specific insect species without harming beneficial organisms or the environment. Additionally, IGRs have low mammalian toxicity, making them safer for human and animal health compared to conventional insecticides. IGRs are considered less hazardous to use than neurotoxic insecticides, although non-target organisms can be negatively affected, especially aquatic arthropods. IGRs are particularly recommended for applications aimed at hoppers. [4] IGRs are slower acting compared to the insecticides listed in the Pesticide Referee Group Priority 3 (Phenyl pyrazoles, Pyrethroids, Organophosphates).
Diflubenzuron
Diflubenzuron (dimilin) is the most widely used insecticide in the USDA-APHIS grasshopper and Mormon cricket suppression program. [5] It is also used to control agricultural pests such as twig borer, stink bug, grasshopper, beet armyworm, soybean looper, rust mite, artichoke plume moth, and peanut root-knot nematode.[6]
The diflubenzuron ULV spray is effective only against immature grasshoppers and crickets and can only be used in the early season. Diflubenzuron treatments are used commonly in the program with slow-acting results that can take a week or longer to notice. [3]
PGR Classification: Priority 2, Very low human toxicity [1]
Teflubenzuron
Teflubenzuron is used alone and combined with Metarhizium.[7]
PGR Classification: Priority 2, Very low human toxicity [1]
Triflumuron
PGR Classification: Priority 2, Very low human toxicity [1]
Organochlorides
Dieldrin
The original preferred locust control agent. An extremely persistent organic pollutant.
Organophosphates
Organophosphates work by disrupting the enzyme acetylcholinesterase (AChE) which is essential for controlling nerve signals in the body. The damage to this enzyme kills insects and can cause damage to the brains and nervous systems of other animals, including birds, amphibians, reptiles, and mammals. [8] Organophosphates are effectively absorbed by inhalation and ingestion. Dermal exposure and consequent systemic absorption vary with the specific agents. There are a variety of organophosphates on the market with a wide range of toxicity. Until the 21st century, they were among the most widely used insecticides.[8] A few notable OPs have been discontinued for use in the European Union and the United States including parathion and chlorpyrifos. Fenitrothion and chlorpyrifos are both widely used in locust control and the amounts applied may exceed recommended rates [9]
Chlorpyrifos
Chlorpyrifos is a broad-spectrum chlorinated organophosphate insecticide. It has been used extensively in locust control and continues to be a popular insecticide against adults and hoppers because it is relatively inexpensive and kills quickly. However, there is increasing criticism of its continued use in control regimes after its ban in the United States and the European Union in 2021. Chlorpyrifos has been linked to neurological effects in children and in vitro damage such as developmental neurotoxicity, chromosome aberration, and DNA damage. [1] Chlorpyrifos is acutely toxic to bees, birds, mammals, aquatic life, and some species of algae. [10]
PGR Classification: Priority 3, Moderate human toxicity[1]
Malathion
Malathion is a non-systemic, broad-spectrum organophosphate insecticide used frequently in locust control. It is toxic to bees, fish, and birds with low toxicity to mammals. [11]
PGR Classification: Priority 3, slight acute human toxicity but may cause skin sensitization [1]
Fenitrothion
Fenitrothion is a broad-spectrum organophosphate insecticide with low mammalian toxicity used broadly around the world.
PGR Classification: Priority 3, Moderate human toxicity[1]
Phenylpyrazole
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phenylpyrazole_insecticides Phenylpyrazole insecticide are a class of broad-spectrum insecticides that kill insects by disrupting essential processes in the central nervous system. Phenyl pyrazoles block glutamate-activated chloride channels in insects. Mammals are less susceptible to its effects because they don't have the same type of chloride channel. However, Phenylpyrazole still has adverse physiological effects independent of its neuronal target. [12]
Fipronil
The toxic effect is slower than other insecticides but affected locusts cease feeding rapidly.[1] The persistence of fipronil is comparable to that of benzoylureas. According to the LPRG, due to its broad-spectrum activity and the high risk of long-term effects on soil insects such as termites, fipronil should only be applied as a barrier treatment. Fipronil is toxic to fish, aquatic invertebrates, and other non-target organisms such as bees. [13]
PGR Classification: Priority 3, Low acute human toxicity[1]
Pyrethroids
A pyrethroid is an organic compound like natural pyrethrins produced by the flowers of [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyrethrum pyrethrum (Chrysanthemum cinerariaefolium and C. coccineum). Synthetic pyrethroids are used as a broadspectrum insecticide. They produce a fast sublethal knockdown effect, followed by paralysis that causes the insect to die or partially recover depending on the dose. Locusts who partially recover usually die later without feeding. [1] Pyrethroids pose a medium to high risk to aquatic invertebrates, especially crustaceans and terrestrial non-target arthropods. [1]
Deltamethrin
Deltamethrin is currently a common substance in locust control as a UL formulation.
PGR Classification: Priority 3, low human toxicity [1]
Lambda-Cyhalothrin
Lambda-Cyhalothrin shows similar effects to locust adults and hoppers as Deltamethrin but is listed as higher human toxicity. The previously LPRG listed neonicotinoid thiamethoxam in combination with lambda-cyhalothrin is no longer listed because of its known high toxicity to pollinators. [1]
PGR Classification: Priority 3, moderate human toxicity [1]
[[File:EastAfricaLocustPEAToplineOutcome.png|thumb|left|[https://hopperwiki.org/images/7/77/USAIDEAFRLocustPEAFAO11-10-20Compliant.pdf East Africa Locust PEA Topline Outcome from USAID Desert locust surveillance and control-Programmatic environmental assessment Note: Chlorpyrifos and fipronil are not approved by this PEA]
Biopesticides
Metarhizium acridum
Metarhizium acridum is a group of fungal isolates that are known to be virulent to Acrididae.
Read more on metarhizium and biopesticides [[Biopesticides#Metarhizium_acridum|her].
Paranosema locustae (also known as Nosema locustae)
Paranosema locustae (synonyms: Antonospora locustae, Nosema locustae) is a entomopathogenic fungu that causes moderate direct mortality after treatment to locust and grasshoppers. [14] Read more [[Biopesticides#Paranosema_locustae_(also_known_as_Nosema_locustae)|her.
Resources
[https://www.usaid.gov/food-assistance/partner-with-us/environmental-risk-management/safeguard-guidance USAID Environmental safeguard guidance and resource
Access country-level assessments, pesticide management, environmental health, environment in humanitarian action, and climate risk management.
Organizations associated with pesticides
| Organization name | Acronym | Website | Type | Focus | Focus keywords | Geographic purview |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Agricultural Center at the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation | View URL | Government | Management, Development, Education | Integrated Pest Management, Pesticides, Agricultural Development, Training, Monitoring, Forecasting | ||
| Directorate General for Plant Protection | DGPV | View URL | Government | Research, Management | Control, Training, Monitoring, Pesticides, Natural sciences | |
| Imperial College London | View URL | University | Research | Pesticides, Control | ||
| National Network of Agriculture Chambers of Niger | RECA | View URL | Unknown | Information Hub, Governance, Management, Development, Funding | Agricultural development, Training, Community development, Policy, Control, Pesticides, Advocacy |
References
- ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 Locust Pesticide Referee Group (2021) Evaluation of Field Trials Data on the Efficacy and Selectivity of Insecticides on Locusts and Grasshoppers. Report to FAO, 59pp.
- ↑ chemicalWATCH Factsheet Beyond Pesticides. Diflubenzuro. www.beyondpesticides.org https://www.beyondpesticides.org/assets/media/documents/pesticides/factsheets/Bendiocarb.pdf
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 USDA Final Human Health and Ecological Risk Assessment for Diflubenzuron Rangeland Grasshopper and Mormon Cricket Suppression Applications (2019) United States Department of Agriculture https://www.aphis.usda.gov/plant_health/ea/downloads/2019/diflubenzuron-hhera-final.pdf
- ↑ Pesticide Referee Group. (2014) Evaluation of field trails data on the efficacy and selectivity. Gammarth (Tunisia). FAO. pp 66.
- ↑ U.S. Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service. (2015) Biological Assessment for the APHIS Rangeland Grasshopper and Mormon Cricket Suppression Program, March 2015.
- ↑ U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (2012) Memorandum - Registration review: problem formulation for the environmental fate, ecological risk, endangered species, and drinking water exposure assessments for diflubenzuron, dated September 5, 2012, 38 pp., available at https://www.regulations.gov/document?D=EPA-HQ-OPP-2012-0714-0005
- ↑ Mohamed MM, Elshafie HA, Bashir MO (2011) Use of teflubenzuron alone and combined with Metarhizium anisopliae and Phenylacetonitrile as control agent against the desert locust, Schistocerca gregaria (Forskal) (Orthoptera: acrididae). Agriculture and Biology Journal of North America 2: 1293–303.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Roberts JR, Reigart JR (2013) Recognition and Management of Pesticide Poisonings: Sixth Edition: 2013. Chapter 5. Organophosphate Insecticides. EPA and Medical University of South Carolina, 277pp. Available from: https://www.epa.gov/pesticide-worker-safety/recognition-and-management-pesticide-poisonings.
- ↑ Mullié WC, Keith JO (1993) The Effects of Aerially Applied Fenitrothion and Chlorpyrifos on Birds in the Savannah of Northern Senegal. Journal of Applied Ecology 30: 536–550. https://doi.org/10.2307/2404193
- ↑ chemicalWATCH Factsheet Beyond Pesticides. Chlorpyrifos. www.beyondpesticides.org https://www.beyondpesticides.org/assets/media/documents/pesticides/factsheets/Chlorpyrifos.pdf
- ↑ chemicalWATCH Factsheet Beyond Pesticides. Malathion. www.beyondpesticides.org https://www.beyondpesticides.org/assets/media/documents/pesticides/factsheets/Malathion.pdf
- ↑ Vidau C, Brunet JL, Badiou A, Belzunces LP (2009) Phenylpyrazole insecticides induce cytotoxicity by altering mechanisms involved in cellular energy supply in the human epithelial cell model Caco-2. Toxicology in Vitro 23 4: 589–597. doi:10.1016/j.tiv.2009.01.017.
- ↑ chemicalWATCH Factsheet Beyond Pesticides. Malathion. www.beyondpesticides.org https://www.beyondpesticides.org/assets/media/documents/pesticides/factsheets/Fipronil.pdf
- ↑ Lockwood JA, Bomar CR, Ewen AB (1999) The history of biological control with Nosema locustae: Lessons for locust management. International Journal of Tropical Insect Science 19: 333–350.
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