Toksisitas Kontak dan Efek Fumigan Minyak Atsiri Cinnamomum spp. (Lauraceae) terhadap Tribolium castaneum (Herbst) (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae)

Abstract

One of the stored product pests which can reduce the quantity and quality of stored products is the flour beetle Tribolium castaneum. Stored-product pests are commonly controlled by fumigation and surface spraying using contact insecticides which can cause various harmful side effects. Essential oils of Cinnamomum spp. constitute safer alternatives for controlling stored product pests. This research was done to determine the contact toxicity and fumigant effect of essential oils of eight species of Cinnamomum and a commercial cassia oil against T. castaneum. A commercial insecticide containing alpha-cypermethrin was included for comparison. Only a commercial cassia oil had a fairly strong contact and fumigant effect, i.e. the treatment with 5% cassia oil caused 75% and 70% mortality, respectively. The other test essential oils were not active to weakly active against T. castaneum. Cassia oil and alpha-cypermethrin acted fairly fast, i.e. test insect mortality mostly occurred at 24 hours after treatment (HAT) and in the next 48 hours only a slight increase in insect mortality was noted. LC50 of cassia oil at 72 hours after treatment by contact and fumigant method was 4.73% and 3.12% respectively. Alpha-cypermethrin had relatively weak lethal effect by contact method and no fumigant effect at concentrations up to 10% but had strong knockdown effect at 5% and 10% by contact method.