Repellent Effects of Five Plant Essential Oils on the Red Imported Fire Ant, Solenopsis invcita

Abstract

The aim of this experiment was to search for the essential oils which have repellent effects on red imported fire ants. Effect of five kinds of essential oils in four concentrations on fire ant workers was evaluated using a Y-tube olfactometer bioassay. Our results indicate that C. annuum oil showed a strong repellent effect on fire ant workers in the four concentrations (P<0.01), and the repellent effect on fire ants is enhanced with increasing concentration. The repellency rate of the concentration of 1000 mu l/ml was 91.2%, indicating that the essential oils had a significant repellent effect. C. nardus, C. cassia, I. purpurea were also considered as effective repellent substances for fire ants, especially at high concentrations, while S. sclarea was not suggested for use as fire ant repellent.

Keywords

• Solenopsis invicta
• Plant essential oil
• Olfaction