BioOne.org will be down briefly for maintenance on 17 December 2024 between 18:00-22:00 Pacific Time US. We apologize for any inconvenience.
How to translate text using browser tools
1 October 2012 The Insecticidal Activities of Fire Ant (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) Venoms Against Plutella xylostella (Lepidoptera: Plutellidae) Larvae
Li-Chuan Lai, Tai-Chih Kuo, Rong-Nan Huang, Wen-Jer Wu
Author Affiliations +
Abstract

Although fire ants frequently have negative impacts on agricultural systems and public health, they have additional beneficial insecticidal effects. To evaluate the potential effect of fire ant venoms on agricultural pests, the compositions of the venoms and their insecticidal activities against Plutella xylostella (L.) larvae were evaluated under laboratory conditions. The alkaloids found in Solenopsis geminata (F.) venom are primarily saturated C11, which occur in both cis and trans forms, whereas the venom of S. invicta Buren contains six principal alkaloids (from trans C11 to C17). Moreover, the proportions of unsaturated alkaloids in the venom of polygynous S. invicta were significantly higher than the corresponding proportions in the monogynous S. invicta, as shown by our previous studies. Fire ant venoms were topically applied to the dorsal thoracic region of fourth-instar larvae of P. xylostella. The results of the experiment showed that the larval symptoms induced by fire ant venom include contractile, flaccid paralysis, black coloration and death. P. xyhstella larvae were most susceptible to S. geminata venom. The order of the susceptibilities of the larvae to the venoms was as follows: S. geminata > S. invicta (monogyne form) > S. invicta (polygyne form), as measured by the corresponding LT50 values at 24 h.

© 2012 Entomological Society of America
Li-Chuan Lai, Tai-Chih Kuo, Rong-Nan Huang, and Wen-Jer Wu "The Insecticidal Activities of Fire Ant (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) Venoms Against Plutella xylostella (Lepidoptera: Plutellidae) Larvae," Journal of Economic Entomology 105(5), 1591-1596, (1 October 2012). https://doi.org/10.1603/EC12075
Received: 20 February 2012; Accepted: 1 June 2012; Published: 1 October 2012
JOURNAL ARTICLE
6 PAGES

This article is only available to subscribers.
It is not available for individual sale.
+ SAVE TO MY LIBRARY

KEYWORDS
Plutella xylostella
Solenopsis invicta
Soleopsis geminata
venom alkaloids
RIGHTS & PERMISSIONS
Get copyright permission
Back to Top