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Efficacy of selected pesticides against Tyrophagus putrescentiae (Schrank): influences of applied concentration, application substrate, and residual activity over time

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Abstract

Dry-cured ham is protected from arthropod infestations using the fumigant methyl bromide. Tyrophagus putrescentiae (Schrank), known as the cheese or ham mite, decreases the quality and quantity of dry-cured hams during the aging process and is a serious economic threat to dry-cured ham companies. Methyl bromide is a strong ozone-depleting substance that is scheduled to be phased out from most uses in the near future. Consequently, developing effective, feasible, and economic alternatives to methyl bromide is the main purpose of the current project. More than ten registered residual pesticides were assessed for toxicity with glass vials treated with different concentrations. Twenty mites were transferred to each vial for 24 h of exposure on contact. Persistence of three of these residual pesticides was evaluated over a 2-month period by applying the recommended label rates to different surfaces. Results indicated that the commercial products of deltamethrin plus chlorpyrifos-methyl, chlorphenapyr, and malathion showed promising results for contact toxicity against mites, and chlorphenapyr was highly effective at very low concentrations. Chlorphenapyr was the only pesticide applied to metal, concrete, and wood that was effective at controlling ham mites for 8 weeks. These pesticides are currently registered for use in similar contexts, so they could be considered as new potential control measures for ham mites in ham plants.

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Acknowledgments

This project was partially funded by Grants from the USDA Methyl Bromide Transition program. This article represents the Kansas State Research and Extension contribution 16-178-J and is a contribution from the Mississippi Agriculture and Forestry Experiment Station. We thank Drs. Raymond A. Cloyd and Kun Yan Zhu for technical assistance.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Entomology, Kansas State University, 123 Waters Hall, Manhattan, KS, 66506, USA

    Salehe Abbar, R. Jeff Whitworth & Thomas W. Phillips

  2. Department of Food Science, Nutrition and Health Promotion, Mississippi State University, Starkville, MS, USA

    M. W. Schilling

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  1. Salehe Abbar
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  2. M. W. Schilling
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  3. R. Jeff Whitworth
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  4. Thomas W. Phillips
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Correspondence to Thomas W. Phillips.

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This article does not contain any studies with human participants or animals performed by any of the authors.

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Since no human was involved in this study, there was no need to obtain informed consent from any individual participants included in the study.

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Communicated by C. G. Athanassiou.

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Abbar, S., Schilling, M.W., Whitworth, R.J. et al. Efficacy of selected pesticides against Tyrophagus putrescentiae (Schrank): influences of applied concentration, application substrate, and residual activity over time. J Pest Sci 90, 379–387 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-016-0766-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-016-0766-3

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