Toxicity of essential oil from Artemisia argyi against Oryzaephilus surinamensis (Linnaeus) (Coleoptera: Silvanidae)

The repellent, fumigant effect and contact toxicity of essential oil extracted from Artemisia argyi (Asteraceae: Artemisia) plant against Oryzaephilus surinamensis (Linnaeus) (Coleoptera: Silvanidae) was investigated. The A. argyi oil exhibited strong repellent, fumigant effect and contact toxicity against O. surinamensis which progressively increased with increased exposure dosage. Repellency percentage of A. argyi oil againstO. surinamensis adults reached IV grade after 48 h exposure period at the dosage of 0.40 µl/cm2, the corrected percentage mortality for fumigant toxicity reached more than 97% at the dosage of 160 µl/l air, and the current population inhibition percentage (CPI) and F1progeny population inhibition percentage (PPI) reached 77.38 and 96.06% at the dosage of 0.80 µl/g, respectively. The results suggest that the A. argyi oil has great potential for effectively controlling O. surinamensis. Key words: Natural product, Artemisia argyi, toxicity, Oryzaephilus surinamensis, stored grain insect.