NEONICOTINOID INSECTICIDES PROVIDE NO PRACTICAL CONTROL OF SOLDIER FLY

THIAMETHOXAM, IMIDACLOPRID AND clothianidin were evaluated for their efficacy against sugarcane soldier fly, Inopus rubriceps (Diptera: Stratiomyidae), in field trials. Thiamethoxam was not effective when applied using coulters in a ratoon crop in the one trial conducted. Imidacloprid was not effective as either a liquid form applied using coulters in ratoons (three trials) or a controlled-release formulation applied in plant cane (one trial), despite application rates several times greater than used successfully against canegrubs. Clothianidin significantly reduced numbers of soldier fly larvae when applied using coulters in ratoons in one of two trials, but only at an application rate more than double the rate registered against canegrubs. None of these insecticides from the neonicotinoid group is likely to have any practical use for soldier fly management.