Treatment by glyphosate-based herbicide alters life history parameters of the rose-grain aphid Metopolophium dirhodum

Abstract

Glyphosate is the number one herbicide in the world. We investigated the sub-lethal effects of this herbicide on the aphid Metopolophium dirhodum (Walker), using an age-stage, two-sex life table approach. Three concentrations of the herbicide (low-33.5, medium-66.9 and high-133.8 mmol dm-3 of active ingredient) and distilled water as the control were used. The LC 50 of the IPA salt of glyphosate on M. dirhodum was equivalent to 174.9 mmol dm-3 of the active ingredient (CI 95: 153.0, 199.0). The population parameters were significantly negatively affected by herbicide application, and this negative effect was progressive with the increasing concentration of the herbicide. A difference of two orders of magnitude existed in the predicted population development of M. dirhodum between the high concentration of the herbicide and the control. This is the first study that comprehensively documents such a negative effect on the population of an herbivorous insect.