Larvicidal effect of Achillea biebersteinii Afan. (Asteraceae) essential oil against larvae of pine processionary moth, Thaumetopoea pityocampa (Denis & Schiffermüller, 1775) (Lepidoptera: Notodontidae)

Abstract

IntroductionForests are ecological environments which protect the natural balance of the world we live in, providing shelter, nest, hunting, feeding, and breeding (as well as making significant contributions in meeting various needs of people), continuously evolving with unique life chains (Tan, 1992;Köse, 2007). A total of 27.6% of Turkey is covered with forests and there are more than 50 tree species adapted to these areas. A total of 35% of them are wide-leaved trees, 54% are coniferous pine species, and 11% are beech, fir, juniper, cedar, spruce, alder, chestnut, hornbeam, linden, ash, and eucalyptus species. Among these forest trees, red pine (Pinus brutia Ten.) (Pinaceae) spreads throughout the Mediterranean, Aegean, and Marmara regions of Turkey and hosts wild life. Its highquality wood is used economically for firewood, timber, etc., and it has become the most essential plant in the forestry industry (Öktem, 1987;Anonymous, 2003). Red pine covers approximately 47% of the forests in the Mediterranean region, 40% of the forests in the Aegean region, and 10% of the forests in the Marmara region. However, it is known that this species is also found in some areas of the western Black Sea region (Neyişçi, 1987).There are many factors that threaten the life of red pine, which provides shelter to wildlife with its natural beauties and fills the diverse needs of people (Neyişçi, 1987;Ertuğrul, 2002;Kanat and Alma, 2004). Among these factors, the most significant are illegal and uncontrolled cutting, agricultural land clearance, forest fires, unplanned and improper zoning permits, road construction, migrations, and wars. In addition to these causes of damage, there are insects, which are referred to as smoke-free fire. One of the most important is the pine processionary moth, Taumetopoea pityocampa (Denis & Schiffermüller, 1775) (Lepidoptera: Notodontidae) (Özdal, 2002). The adults of T. pityocampa do not cause harm. However, the larvae feed on coniferous pine species such as Pinus halepensis Mill., P. silvestris, P. pinea, P. nigra with Cedrus libani A. Rich.

Chemical composition of Vitex agnus-castus L. (Verbenaceae) essential oil and its larvicidal effectiveness on Thaumetopoea pityocampa (Denis & Schiffermüller, 1775) (Lepidoptera: Notodontidae) larvae

“…(Lamiaceae) and Tanacetum argyrophyllum (C. Koch) Tvzel. (Asteraceae) caused the highest mortality in L2, L3 and L4 instars (100% at 20 μL/dish) (Kesdek et al, 2013). In the present study, 24 h after treatment with 1000 μL/L of V. agnus-castus essential oil, the highest mortality was 70.0, 46.6 and 30.0% in L1, L3 and L4 instars (Table 2).…”

“…In order to determine the larvicidal effectiveness of the V. agnus-castus essential oil against T. pityocampa larvae, the essential oil was dissolved at 1:2 in ethanol and the final concentration was prepared as 250, 500 and 1000 µL/L doses (Kesdek et al, 2013). Two layers of sterilized filter paper were placed in Petri dishes (according to 120 ml volume, 9 cm width x 1.5 cm depth).…”

“…The experiments were conducted at 25±2ºC, 65±5% RH and 14:10 h L:D photoperiod, each test was repeated with three times for each larval stage and dose. Dead larvae were counted 24, 48, 72 and 96 h after treatment (Kesdek et al, 2014(Kesdek et al, , 2020.…”

“…Heydarzade & Moravvej (2012) determined that Foeniculum vulgare Miller (Apiaceae), Teucrium polium L. (Lamiaceae) and Satureja hortensis L. (Lamiaceae) oils were highly toxic to Callosobruchus maculatus (Coleoptera: Fabricius, 1775) (Coleoptera: Bruchidae). Kesdek et al (2014) reported that Achillea wilhelmsii C. Koch (Asteraceae), Nepeta meyeri Benth., S. hortensis., Origanum onites L., Origanum rotundifolium Boiss.…”

Toxicities of different essential oils to Tetranychus urticae Koch, 1836 (Acari: Tetranychidae) and Acanthoscelides obtectus (Say, 1831) (Coleoptera: Bruchidae) adults

“…Achillea santolinoides (K. Koch) Lag. is grown naturally in almost all regions of Turkey, and has long been used for its therapeutically and aromatic (Davis, 1982;Kesdek et al, 2014).…”