Chemical composition, antimicromicrobial activity and insecticidal activity against the lesser mealworm Alphitobius diaperinus (Panzer) (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae) of Origanum vulgare L. ssp. hirtum (Link) and Artemisia dracunculus L. essential oils

Abstract

Greek oregano EO may be a good alternative to antibiotic growth promoters and coccidiostats whose use in feeding farm animals has been prohibited since January 2006 under European Union directives. The introduction of O. vulgare L. ssp. hirtum EO into the premises of farm and poultry houses may help to improve sanitary conditions and control of the lesser mealworm inhabiting these buildings. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry.

The lesser mealworm Alphitobius diaperinus: a noxious pest or a promising nutrient source?

“…; Szczepanik et al . ). Its introduction into poultry production facilities is believed to have occurred through contaminated feed (O'Connor ), however, its rapid spread can be attributed to the agricultural practice of using poultry litter as fertilizer (Kaufman et al .…”

“…Furthermore, the cryptic behaviour of A. diaperinus involves hiding in deeper litter layers, thus avoiding direct contact with the insecticides, which negatively affect the efficacy of chemical control, resulting in control failures (Szczepanik et al . ). These restrictions, together with the public concerns on health risks that are associated with the presence of chemical residues in animal food products, have triggered the development and evaluation of other management techniques against A. diaperinus apart from chemical control (Watson et al .…”

“…Promising results have been also obtained with the use of allelochemicals, such as plant extracts and plant secondary metabolites (Szczepanik et al . , , ; Szczepanik & Szumny ; Arena et al . ).…”

“…hirtum (Link) essential oil against larvae of A. diaperinus , in association with its antibacterial activity (Szczepanik et al . ), suggests that essential oils may be a valuable source of feed additives and good alternatives to antibiotics and coccidiostats, which were recently banned in the EU (EU Regulation 1831/2003).…”

Synergistic interaction between carvacrol and Bacillus thuringiensis crystalline proteins against Cydia pomonella and Spodoptera exigua

“…Carvacrol or plant extracts with carvacrol as the main component are known to exert negative effects against coleopteran (Szczepanik et al 2018), homopteran (Zekri et al 2016), dipteran (Andrade-Ochoa et al 2018;de Mesquita et al 2018;Giatropoulos et al 2018), lepidopteran (Melo et al 2018), neuropteran (Castilhos et al 2018), and hemipteran (Gaire et al 2019;Rizvi et al 2018) insects. This phytochemical was shown to exhibit contact (Castilhos et al 2018;Melo et al 2018;Rizvi et al 2018), repellent (Giatropoulos et al 2018), and fumigant (Gaire et al 2019) toxicity.…”