Evaluation of Toxicity of Carbosulfan to Honey bees, Apis cerana indica in Brinjal Ecosystem Kamala I Merlin*, Kennedy JS, Kumar Vinoth Pesticide Toxicology Laboratory Department of Agricultural Entomology, Centre for Plant Protection Studies, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Tamil Nadu-641 003, India *Correspondence: merlinento@gmail.com
Online published on 31 July, 2023. Abstract The honey bee Apis cerana indica is an ecologically and economically important pollinator species worldwide. Honey bees are major pollinators of brinjal (Solnum melongena L.). Carbosulfan is ascertained to be efficient for managing both lepidopteran and sucking pests of brinjal. A laboratory and field experiments were conducted to evaluate the safety of carbosulfan to honey bees in brinjal eco system. Carbosulfan at 1000 g ai ha−1 recorded 100% mortality after 24 h of treatment, followed by carbosulfan at 500 g ai ha−1 (98.0%). The recommended dose of carbosulfan @ 250 g ai ha−1 recorded 58.7 and 88.0% mortality after 12 and 24 h of treatment. In the field, the population of foraging honey bees visiting brinjal field showed negative response after carbosulfan spray at higher doses, indicating that the chemical is lethal to honey bees. However, at the recommended dose of 250 g ai ha−1, the normal 28 visits by honey bees reduced to 11 visits on 1 DAT, 17 visits on 2 DAT and rebounds to 20 visits on 3 DAT suggesting it is to be used in brinjal ecosystem only in case of severe infestation. Top Keywords Toxicity, Carbosulfan, Apis cerana indica, Honey bees, Brinjal. Top |