Sobrevivência e capacidade de voo de Apis melllifera após contato com resíduos de Sulfoxaflor em folhas de meloeiro.

Abstract

The melon (Cucumis melo L.) is one of the main cucurbits cultivated in Brazil, especially in the Brazilian Northeast. Among the management strategies used during melon cultivation are chemical pest control and the addition of the honey bee Apis mellifera hives around the production areas. Thus, the challenge of carrying out chemical control of pests and preserving bees in the field arises, being essential studies related to the toxicity of insecticides on the pollinators of the crop. Therefore, the objective was to evaluate the survival and flight capacity of the honey bee A. mellifera after exposure to residues of the insecticide Sulfoxaflor on melon leaves. The work was carried out at the Entomology Laboratory belonging to the CCTA/UFCG, Campus Pombal/PB, in a completely randomized design, in a 3 X 6 factorial scheme, with two doses of the insecticide Sulfoxaflor, 0.048 g i.a./L and 0.192 g i.a./L, a control (distilled water) and six exposure times (Immediately after spraying, 1h, 2h, 3h, 24h and 48h after spraying), with 10 repetitions. After exposure to residues on leaves, mortality and behavior bee were evaluated at 1h, 2h, 3h, 4h, 5h, 6h, 12h and 24h. 100% mortality was observed in bees exposed to a dose of 0.048 g i.a./L after contact with freshly sprayed leaves and at 1h, 2h and 3h after spraying. The mortality of bees exposed to Sulfoxaflor residues after 24 h and 48 h of spraying this dose was 77.9% and 76.8%, respectively. As for a dose of 0.192 g i.a./L, regardless of the exposure time after spraying, 100% mortality was observed in the bees. The median lethal time (TL50) provided by the Sulfoxaflor insecticide doses was 18.6 hours, the highest, and 3.0 hours, the lowest. Sulfoxaflor impaired the surviving bees' ability to fly. Regardless of dose and exposure time after spraying, the insecticide was highly toxic to A. mellifera.