Susceptibility of the Lesser Mealworm, Alphitobius diaperinus (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae), From Broiler Farms of Southern Brazil to Insecticides

The lesser mealworm, Alphitobius diaperinus (Panzer, 1797) (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae), is considered the primary insect pest in broiler farms in Brazil. In this study, we characterized the susceptibility of A. diaperinus populations from broiler farms of southern Brazil to cypermethrin and chlorpyrifos. Larvae and adults of A. diaperinus were exposed to these technical insecticides diluted in acetone in residual bioassays. A geographic variation in the susceptibility of larvae and adults of A. diaperinus to both insecticides was detected. The larval LC50 for cypermethrin ranged from 0.43 to 7.33 mu g a.i./cm(2). Two populations from Santa Catarina state presented higher resistance ratios of 13.6- and 17-fold. When adults were exposed to cypermethrin, the LC50 ranged from 0.46 to 4.93 mu g a.i./cm(2), with population SC-3 from Santa Catarina having lower susceptibility (resistance ratio of 10.7-fold). When exposed to chlorpyrifos, A. diaperinus larvae present LC50 values ranging from 0.21 to 4.30 mu g a.i./cm(2). Larvae from Parana and Santa Catarina (SC-1 population) presented the highest resistance ratios, ranging from 10- to 20-fold. In adults, the LC50 of chlorpyrifos ranged from 0.17 to 5.30 mu g a. i./cm(2), showing a maximum resistance ratio of 31-fold in a population from Parana state. Based on LC99 values, candidate diagnostic concentrations of 15 and 12 mu g a.i./cm(2) of cypermethrin and chlorpyrifos, respectively, were also estimated for the resistance monitoring of A. diaperinus in Brazil. The implications of these results in Insect Resistance Management are discussed.