Susceptibility of the Confused and Red Flour Beetles to Anoxia Produced by Helium and Nitrogen at Various Temperatures12
- 1 February 1972
- journal article
- Published by Oxford University Press (OUP) in Journal of Economic Entomology
- Vol. 65 (1) , 60-64
- https://doi.org/10.1093/jee/65.1.60
Abstract
Investigations were conducted to determine the relative susceptibility of different stages of Tribolium confusum Jacquelin duVal and T. castaneum (Herbst) to 100% helium or nitrogen, The adult stage was the most susceptible, followed by larval, egg, and pupal stages, T. castaneum adults were slightly more susceptible to 100% He or N2 than adults of T. confusum. Helium was comparatively more toxic than nitrogen, especially to the adults at lower relative humidity. Increasing the relative humidity from 38 to 100% decreased the susceptibility of T. confusum and T. castaneum adults to the gases tested. On the other hand, increasing exposure temperature from 15.6 to 21.1 to 26.7°C resulted in increased susceptibility of beetles to anoxia produced by nitrogen or helium. Toxicity of 100% He or N2 atmosphere may be due to the combined deleterious effects of anoxia and inert gas narcosis.Keywords
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