Actividad insecticida de aceites esenciales sobre Helicoverpa armígera (Hübner) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)

Abstract

The objective was to evaluate the insecticidal activity of essential oils Citrus aurantium (Linnaeus) (Rutaceae), Citrus sinensis (Linnaeus) (Rutaceae) and the majoritary component Limonene; and essential oils Piper spp. (Linnaeus) (Piperaceae); Syzygium aromaticum (Merrill & Perry) (Myrteraceae); Cinnamomum zeylanicum (Presl) (Lauraceae); Zingiber officinale (Roscoe) (Zingiberaceae) and Rosmarinus officinalis (Linnaeus) (Lamiaceae) about first instar larvae of H. armigera. The extraction of essential oils was performed by hydrodistillation technique using the Clevenger modified. Provided 2 mL of the solution of each essential oil at 2% (v.v–1) concentration on first instar larvae of H. armigera, using an airbrush with pressure 15 lb/in2. Ten replicates were performed for each treatment, with 10 caterpillars per replicate. It was evaluated the acute toxicity of essential oils by dead caterpillars count after 48 hours treated. Essential oils C.aurantium, the majoritary component Limonene, C. sinensis, R. officinalis, C. zeylanicum, S. aromaticum, Z. officinale and Piper spp. showed mortality of 97, 94, 87, 9, 8, 3, 2 and 0% respectively. Essential oils of Citrus spp. genus were emphasized showing the highest percentage of mortality, being an alternative for developing new active molecules form organic compounds, which can be incorporated into a biological control program for H. armigera.