Susceptibilities of Helicoverpa zea (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) populations from the Mississippi Delta to a diamide insecticide

Authors: Allen, Clint; Little, Nathan; Perera, Omaththage

Submitted to: Journal of Economic Entomology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 10/24/2022
Publication Date: 11/16/2022
Citation: Allen, K.C., Little, N., Perera, O.P. 2022. Susceptibilities of Helicoverpa zea (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) populations from the Mississippi Delta to a diamide insecticide. Journal of Economic Entomology. 116(1):160–167. https://doi.org/10.1093/jee/toac180.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/jee/toac180

Interpretive Summary: The useful life of an insecticide may be decreased with the development of resistance to that chemical by targeted insect pests. Early detection of insecticide resistance may allow measures to mitigate wide-scale development in targeted pests over as large scale. The corn earworm is a major pest of row crops in the Southern United States. Control of this insect is dependent on preventative insecticidal transgenic crops and synthetic insecticide applications when damaging populations are encountered in the field. Recently, the use of chemicals from the diamide class of insecticides, particularly chlorantraniliprole, has been used to control unacceptable populations. Due to the increased importance of this active ingredient for control of corn earworms, populations of this insect from the Mississippi Delta have been monitored for susceptibilities annually since 2016. Overall, 58 populations of corn earworm were examined for the susceptibility to chlorantraniliprole through incorporation of insecticide in artificial insect diet. Overall, there was not a detectable trend of insecticide resistance to chlorantraniliprole from 2016-2021. There was also a substantial stunting of growth in surviving caterpillars that were exposed to even the lowest concentrations used in laboratory tests.s

Technical Abstract: The corn earworm, Helicoverpa zea (Boddie), is a major pest of row crops in the Southern United States. Control of this insect is dependent on preventative insecticidal transgenic crops and synthetic insecticide applications when damaging populations are encountered in the field. Recently, the use of chemicals from the diamide class of insecticides, particularly chlorantraniliprole, has been used to control unacceptable populations. Due to the increased importance of this active ingredient for control of corn earworms, populations of this insect from the Mississippi Delta have been monitored for susceptibilities annually since 2016. Overall, 58 populations of H. zea were examined for the susceptibility to chlorantraniliprole through diet-incorporated bioassays from 2016-2021. Based on probit analysis, there was only a four-fold difference between the highest and lowest LC50 estimates for all populations tested. Through weights of 2nd and 3rd instar larvae, there appears to be a substantial fitness cost associated with surviving caterpillars that fed on various concentrations of chlorantraniliprole in bioassays, which is not captured through the yes or no response of typical survival analysis. Overall, there was not a detectable trend of reduced susceptibility to chlorantraniliprole over the course of the six-year study.