Insecticide Resistance Management in Spodoptera litura (Fabricius) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) in Punjab, India

Spodoptera litura larvae collected from different vegetable growing areas of the Punjab were monitored for insecticide resistance. Third instar larvae were exposed to chlorpyriphos, fenvalerate, cypermethrin, methomyl, endosulfan and profenofos at 0.15, 0.25, 1.0, 1.2, 2.0 and 3.0 μg larva⁻¹, respectively. The survival of the seven populations indicated that all were resistant to cypermethrin, fenvalerate, endosulfan, and chlorpyriphos. Resistance to profenofos was negligible except in the Hoshiarpur and Samrala populations. The test insects were collected from different locations and from various crops; so it is likely that all populations of S litura had been exposed to a wide spectrum of insecticides prior to collection. All the insecticides tested against insects derived from populations obtained from the different geographical localities in the Punjab showed increased tolerance when compared to the least tolerant populations among them, indicating the development of resistance in the Punjab. It can be suggested that sequential application of endosulfan followed by chlorpyriphos, fenvalerate and quinalphos might be used to manage insecticide resistance in this pest in India.