Insecticide resistance in soil arthropod pests: Status and mechanism

Soil arthropod pests are those which live in the soil and cause economic loss to humans. Root maggots, wireworms, whitegrubs, termites and ants are important soil pests. Insecticides are used for the management of these pests and the buffering capacity of soil makes difficult for these pests to be managed and warrants high concentration of pesticides with repeated applications. This increases the selection pressure which inturn makes the pest to develop resistance against pesticides. Pesticide resistance in soil arthropod pests is observed as early as 1962 in Anthomyiid flies to cyclodienes. Many soil pests were reportedly developed resistance to organophosphates, organo chlorines and synthetic pyrethroid insecticides. Most of the soil insect pests reportedly developed resistance to insecticides through different mechanisms viz., enhanced enzymatic metabolism though detoxifying enzymes, altered target-site sensitivity, penetration resistance and altered behavior.