Maneuvering humidity to augment response of phosphine against adult and egg stages of Liposcelis bostrychophila Badonnel (Psocoptera: Liposcelidae)

Phosphine and other fumigants have proved hazardous for treatment of stored product commodities because of their residual toxicity. In the present investigation, a comprehensive study was conducted to explore the role of different levels of humidity on efficacy of phosphine against egg and adult stages of the psocid, Liposcelis bostrychophila Badonnel. The results suggested that humidity play a significant role in enhancement of phosphine efficacy against the psocid, which has posed a new threat to food safety and security. It was concluded that use of low level of humidity with low doses of phosphine can be successful as an IPM strategy against the pest, which otherwise requires high humidity to survive and high level of phosphine to control. This technique may be helpful not only in reducing the phosphine doses but also in significant reduction of exposure time to achieve a specific level of mortality. Key words: