Effects of permethrin treated wood on the subterranean termite Reticulitermes flavipes (Kollar) and comparison of solvent extraction for HPLC analysis of permethrin in wood

Abstract

Permethrin is a common insecticide used in wood preservation. It is an effective synthetic pyrethroid that is considered to be less toxic to higher organisms than organochlorine insecticides. In wood preservation, it can be used in combination with fungicides such as 3-iodo-2-propynyl butyl carbamate (IPBC). Permethrin has a dual mode of action as it is a repellent and a contact insecticide. Although the efficacy of permethrin on termites has been examined, many of the studies looked at the effects of treated soil and not treated wood. In this study, we examined the effects of three levels of permethrin in treated southern yellow pine (SYP) on the subterranean termite, Reticulitermes flavipes. Termites were exposed to SYP blocks treated by the cooperator to low, medium and high levels. In a separate AWPA E1 test, we treated blocks with 0.04, 0.07, and 0.25% permethrin (m/m). Complete mortality (100%) was observed at all treatment levels at the end of 28 days in both tests. Untreated and non-permethrin treated pine exposed in both tests showed low mortality and greater mass loss compared to treated blocks. Since an AWPA standard for analysis of permethrin from wood does not currently exist, an experimental HPLC method was developed comparing two different solvent systems to remove permethrin from ground wood via sonication with subsequent analysis via HPLC. The results from these experiments may serve as preliminary data to develop a proposed AWPA analytical standard for permethrin analysis in wood.

Citation

Mankowski, Mark; Boyd, Blossie; Webb, Geoffrey. 2016. Effects of permethrin treated wood on the subterranean termite Reticulitermes flavipes (Kollar) and comparison of solvent extraction for HPLC analysis of permethrin in wood. In: Proceedings, American Wood Protection Association annual meeting 2016. Vol. 112: 77-83.