Toxicity of Insecticides and Other Agents, 1988

Tests were conducted to determine the toxicity of 13 nonrestricted and 5 restricted insecticides, 3 detergents, volck oil, and Pinesol disinfectant to field-collected adult female crab spiders. Spiders attached to orb webs in the field were sprayed with the chemical agent to allow for full coverage without run-off. Applications were made with commercially prepared insecticide aerosols or with a trigger sprayer for the wettable powder and emulsifiable concentrate formulations, detergents, volck oil, and disinfectant. A different infested location in the field was used for each treatment to avoid contamination. Ten treated spiders were removed from their webs, placed in an 8-oz paper squat container, covered with organdy and secured with rubber bands. This constituted a replicate, and tests consisted of at least 3 replicates. Spiders sprayed with water served as the control treatment. Treated spiders were held in a laboratory at 22°C and 40% RH. Mortality was determined 24 h after treatment and corrected for natural mortality with Abbott’s formula. Moribund spiders were considered dead.