Castor Seed Oil: A Promising Biomitecide for Sustainable Management of the Red Coffee Mite (Oligonychus ilicis) (McGregor, 1917) (Prostigmata: Tetranychidae)
Thiago Rodrigues Dutra *
Instituto Federal de Educação, Ciência e Tecnologia do Espírito Santo – Campus Itapina, Colatina, Espírito Santo, Brazil.
Claudiane Martins da Rocha
Instituto Federal de Educação, Ciência e Tecnologia do Espírito Santo – Campus Itapina, Colatina, Espírito Santo, Brazil.
Anderson Mathias Holtz
Instituto Federal de Educação, Ciência e Tecnologia do Espírito Santo – Campus Itapina, Colatina, Espírito Santo, Brazil.
Tatiane Pereira Cofler
Instituto Federal de Educação, Ciência e Tecnologia do Espírito Santo – Campus Itapina, Colatina, Espírito Santo, Brazil.
Ronilda Lana Aguiar
Instituto Federal de Educação, Ciência e Tecnologia do Espírito Santo – Campus Itapina, Colatina, Espírito Santo, Brazil.
José Romário de Carvalho
Secretary of Education of the State of Espírito Santo, Jerônimo Monteiro, ES, Brazil.
Ana Beatriz Mamedes Piffer
Instituto Federal de Educação, Ciência e Tecnologia do Espírito Santo – Campus Itapina, Colatina, Espírito Santo, Brazil.
Amanda Gonçalves Alves
Instituto Federal de Educação, Ciência e Tecnologia do Espírito Santo – Campus Itapina, Colatina, Espírito Santo, Brazil.
Matheus de Paula Gomes
Instituto Federal de Educação, Ciência e Tecnologia do Espírito Santo – Campus Itapina, Colatina, Espírito Santo, Brazil.
Irany Rodrigues Pretty
Instituto Federal de Educação, Ciência e Tecnologia do Espírito Santo – Campus Itapina, Colatina, Espírito Santo, Brazil.
Patrícia Soares Furno Fontes
Instituto Federal de Educação, Ciência e Tecnologia do Espírito Santo – Campus Itapina, Colatina, Espírito Santo, Brazil.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
The coffee red mite [Oligonychus ilicis (McGregor, 1917)] (Prostigmata: Tetranychidae) is one of the main causes of conilon coffee (Coffea canephora Pierre & Froehn) crop damage due to its phytophagous habit. Nowadays, environment and human harmful synthetic pesticides are used to control this pest. In this context, plant-derived bioactive compounds have been studied as a sustainable alternative for the pest mite management in crops. The aim of this study was to evaluate the castor (Ricinus communis) seed oil action on eggs, larvae, nymph (protonymph and deutonymph) and adults of O. ilicis. Coffee leaf discs (4 cm in diameter) containing 12 individuals of O. ilicis were sprayed with castor seed oil at concentrations of 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, 2.5 and 3.0% (v/v) using airbrush. The ovicidal and mortality activity of this extract were evaluated against O. ilicis. The effective concentration of castor oil to cause 50% inhibition of O. ilicis larvae hatching (LC 50) was 1.26% (v/v). Oligonychus ilicis treated with this oil at a concentration of 3.0% presented a larvae hatching percentage of 29.3%, lower than that obtained for the control treatment (79.1%). Castor seed oil 3.0% (v/v) was highly toxic to nymphs and adults of O. ilicis with mortality of 96 and 88%, respectively. Castor seed oil was effective for larvae hatching inhibition and nymphs and adults mortality of O. ilicis, being promising for the coffee red mite sustainable biocontrol.
Keywords: Coffea canephora, alternative control, mitecide, biopesticide