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Title: INSECTICIDAL EFFECTIVENESS OF MAMMEA AMERICANA L. EXTRACTS ON LARVE OF DIABROTICA VIRGIFERA VIRGIFERA (COLEOPTERA: CHRYSOMELIDAE) AND TRICHOPLUSIA NI (LEPIDOPERTA: NOCTUIDAE)

Author
item Greenspan Gallo, Lyn
item ALLEE, LESLIE - CORNELL UNIVERSITY
item Gibson, Donna

Submitted to: Economic Botany
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/15/1996
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary: Screening for natural compounds which may offer safer and economic means of pest control is a continuing goal of this research team. We are interested in identifying natural insecticides which may be effective against a number of persistent pests. In this study, we examined the usefulness of the insecticidal agents from the mamey apple (Mammea americana) against larvae or adult forms of corn rootworm, cabbage looper, American and German cockroach, and diamondback moth. The insecticide is concentrated in the seeds, fruit peels, and leaves, all of which are byproducts of the fruit processing stream. We have added cabbage looper and western corn rootworm to the list of insects which are susceptible to mammein, the insecticidal principle found in mamey apple.

Technical Abstract: Seed and leaf extracts of Mammea americana (mamey apple) have a history of use as biopesticides, and the avtice principles were previously characterized. We chose to reexamine the utility of this natural bioinsecticide in light of an existing source of material from the fruit processing waste stream. This laboratory study adds Diabrotica virgifera virgifera and Trichoplusia ni to the list of insects which are susceptible to the insecticidal principles of M. americana and confirms earlier reports of activity against Blatella germanica, Periplaneta americana and Plutella xylostella. We repdort LD50's for crude haxane extracts of M. aermicana leaves and seeds against T. ni. These materials represent renewable resources of bioinsecticides for agriculture, and should kindle a renewed interest in these coumarin-type compounds for novel pesticidal action.