Flour mill fumigations are currently carried out with methyl bromide (MB). By 2005, this gas will be phased out in developed countries because it has been listed under the Montreal Protocol as a substance that depletes the ozone layer. Hydrogen cyanide (HCN) was used as the fumigant of choice for mills in the first part of the last century, and was then replaced by MB. Consequently, it should n...

The insecticidal pyrrole chlorfenapyr was applied to concrete, vinyl tile, and plywood surfaces, at an application rate of 1.1 gAIm . Adult Tribolium castaneum (Herbst), the red flour beetle, and adult Tribolium confusum (Du Val), the confused flour beetle, were exposed for 2 and 4 h, removed, and held without food for 7 d post-exposure. All beetles survived the initial exposures, but survival ...

Use of insecticides can have disruptive effects on the environment. Replacing the chemical compounds in these insecticides with plant materials, however, can be a safe method with low environmental risk. In the current study, chemical composition and insecticidal activities of the essential oil from cardamom, Elettaria cardamomum L. (Maton) (Zingiberales: Zingiberaceae) on the adults of three s...

Catmint oil and hydrogenated catmint oil were evaluated as repellents for adult Tribolium casteneum (Herbst) (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae), the red flour beetle, and T. confusum (DuVal), the confused flour beetle, using both a traditional method of visual assessment of distribution and a video recording method to determine movement patterns of individual insects. Visual assessments of distributio...

Threeand 4-week-old Tribolium castaneum (Herbst), the red flour beetle, and Tribolium confusum (du Val), the confused flour beetle, were exposed at five different temperature–relative humidity (r.h.) combinations to a volatile formulation of the insect growth regulator (IGR) hydroprene (called Pointsourcet). Typical effects associated with IGR exposure, such as arrested larval growth, morpholog...

β-Catenin is a multifunctional scaffolding protein with roles in Wnt signaling, cell adhesion, and centrosome separation. Here, we report on independent duplications of the insect β-Catenin ortholog armadillo (arm) in the red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum and the pea aphid Acyrthosiphon pisum. Detailed sequence analysis shows that in both species, one paralog lost critical residues of the α-...

ABSTRACT We used the red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum Herbst (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae), to compare three feeding bioassay techniques using flour disks. The area (scanner or digital photographs) and mass (sensitive balance) of the same flour disks were measured daily for 1 or 2 wk to assess feeding by insects. The loss in mass and area over 4 h was measured, as some variation over time wa...

Parasites have profound effects on host ecology and evolution, and the effects of parasites on host ecology are often influenced by the magnitude of host susceptibility to parasites. Many parasites have complex life cycles that require intermediate hosts for their transmission, but little is known about the genetic basis of the intermediate host's susceptibility to these parasites. This study e...

A field test was conducted whereby adult Tribolium confusum (du Val), the confused flour beetle, were exposed in Petri dishes lined with filter paper and containing 0–2000mg of flour, to a pyrethrin–CO2 aerosol inside an empty warehouse. Applications were made according to label directions, and beetles were exposed to the aerosol for 2 h. After exposure, knockdown was assessed, and beetles were...