Effect of Insecticides on Natural Enemies in Groundnut

Abstract

The most significant effect of inadvertent application of pesticides has been the eradication of natural enemies. It is necessary to assess the insecticidal qualities, mammalian toxicity, and safety to natural enemies before incorporating in IPM. This study evaluates the impact of some insecticides on natural enemies of groundnut defoliators viz., Spodoptera litura (F), Helicoverpa armigera (Hübner), Thysanoplusia orichalcea (F), Aproaerema modicella (Deventer) and Maruca vitrata (Geyer). The results revealed maximum occurrence of coccinellid and spider predators in untreated control, and all the insecticides were comparable as regards their effect.