The assessment of lethal dose/concentrations is a very useful tool to compare the toxicities of different active ingredients and different formulations of insecticides containing the same active ingredient.
For a long time, the classical laboratory method for estimating the side effects of insecticides on insect pests, natural enemies and beneficial arthropods was to determine the median lethal dose (LD 50) or lethal concentration (LC 50). Methods to test the side effects of toxicants have been developed as a function of insect control evaluations. The effects of insecticides and other toxicants on insect pests and other arthropods have been the subject of innumerous studies in the past several decades. An accurate assessment of these effects is crucial to acquire knowledge on the overall insecticide efficacy in the management of pest insect populations, as well as on their selectivity toward nontarget organisms.ĭespite numerous novel control agents available at integrated pest management programs, insecticides remain as the most reliable method for insect control. In this chapter, many sublethal effects of insecticides were addressed for several chemical groups, such as botanical insecticides, carbamate, diamide, insect growth regulators, neonicotinoid, organochlorides, organophosphates, pyrethroid and others. Besides mortality, the sublethal dose/concentrations of an insecticide can affect insect biology, physiology, behavior and demographic parameters.
Due to the limitations of the traditional methods, recent studies in the past three decades are assessing the sublethal effects of insecticides upon several important biological traits of insect pests and natural enemies. Studies related to the effect of insecticides on insect pests and nontarget organisms, such as natural enemies, are traditionally accessed by the estimative of lethal effects, through mortality data.
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