The objective of this study was to evaluate the storage time of Moringa oleifera oil on the acaricidal activity on Tetranychus urticae. Was used amber bottle for storage of oil which remained in a room at 25°C. The storage times considered in the experiment were 0, 30, 60, 90 and 120 days after extraction. At each time a suspension at the concentration of 3% (v/v) was applied on the mite. A completely randomized design with 5 treatments (storage times) was used, containing 8 replicates, composed of 12 females per replicate. The application was carried out by spraying. Mortality data were submitted to the sphericity test and then to analysis of variance, followed by non-linear regression. The analysis of variance revealed that the time factor of storage significantly affected the mortality of the mite, according to an exponential model. Mortality was increasing, reaching a mean of 74.16 ± 8.37% at 120 days. The oil of M. oleifera is promising for the control of T. urticae, improving the acaricidal activity over time.

Henosepilachna vigintioctopunctata was recorded on Solanum melongena L. for the first time in cultivated crops areas in Espirito Santo State, southeastern Brazil, in the first semester of 2017. In one-year research, H. vigintioctopunctata was recorded in eight host plants of the families Amaranthaceae and Solanaceae.  These new records represent a high potential  establishment of this pest in Brazil.

Many herbivorous insects can overcome chemical plant defenses, using the plant's defensive products for their own good, as a defense against predators. Eucalyptus spp. (Myrtaceae), recently introduced in Brazil, are rich in secondary compounds; however, there are reports that these plants have been suffering from population outbreaks of defoliating Lepidoptera in Brazil. The predator Podisus nigrispinus (Dallas) (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) has been used against herbivorous insects in eucalyptus plantations, but little is known about its establishment in the field. This study aims to investigate whether the effectiveness of this predator may be affected indirectly by compounds of eucalyptus plants, when compared to guava, Psidium guajava L., a Brazilian native species of Myrtaceae. Thus, we evaluated the performance of P. nigrispinus on larvae of Thyrinteina arnobia (Stoll) (Lepidoptera: Geometridae) reared on eucalyptus (exotic species) or guava plants (native species). Podisus nigrispinus performance (reproduction and survival) was better on larvae fed on guava than on larvae fed on eucalyptus. It is possible that the negative effect on the predator's development occurred because of the plants’ secondary compounds appropriated by caterpillars, due to the short coevolutionary history between eucalyptus and the predator. The data suggest that the chemical compounds that could help the plant's defenses against herbivores may also affect their natural enemies, especially when the interaction between plant and natural enemy involves an exotic plant recently introduced into the insect's habitat.

Potencial insecticida de frutos de piñón manso en diferentes etapas de maduración sobre Myzus persicae (Hemiptera: Aphididae

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.