Tebufenpyrad: compatibility with integrated mite control on apples

Successful integrated mite control (IMC) depends on the availability of acaricides which act selectively on pest mites with minimal effects on predators. Laboratory bioassays of tebufenpyrad against adult female Panonychus ulmi (Koch) provided baseline toxicity data and showed it to be highly active. Bioassays also showed tebufenpyrad was toxic to the predatory mite Typhlodromus pyri Scheuten but it was approximately 70 times less toxic to the predators than to P. ulmi at the lc ₅₀. Field trials using four concentrations of tebufenpyrad (10, 7.5, 5 and 2.5 g a.i./100 l) confirmed it was selectively more toxic to the pest mites than to predators and showed that it is compatible with IMC. It is suggested that a concentration of 5 g a.i./100 l would be suitable for IMC. A resistance management strategy for tebufenpyrad is proposed.