Thermal Death Kinetics of Red Flour Beetle (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae)

Authors: Johnson, J. A.; Valero, K. A.; Wang, S.; Tang, J.

Source: Journal of Economic Entomology, Volume 97, Number 6, December 2004 , pp. 1868-1873(6)

Publisher: Entomological Society of America

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Journal of Economic Entomology is published bimonthly in February, April, June, August, October, and December. The journal publishes articles on the economic significance of insects and is divided into the following sections: apiculture & social insects; arthropods in relation to plant disease; forum; insecticide resistance and resistance management; ecotoxicology; biological and microbial control; ecology and behavior; sampling and biostatistics; household and structural insects; medical entomology; molecular entomology; veterinary entomology; forest entomology; horticultural entomology; field and forage crops, and small grains; stored-product; commodity treatment and quarantine entomology; and plant resistance. In addition to research papers, Journal of Economic Entomology publishes Letters to the Editor, interpretive articles in a Forum section, Short Communications, Rapid Communications, and Book Reviews.
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Abstract:

While developing radio frequency heat treatments for dried fruits and nuts, we used a heating block system developed by Washington State University to identify the most heat-tolerant life stage of red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum (Herbst), and to determine its thermal death kinetics. Using a heating rate of 15°C/min to approximate the rapid heating of radio frequency treatments, the relative heat tolerance of red flour beetle stages was found to be older larvae > pupae and adults > eggs and younger larvae. Lethal exposure times for temperatures of 48, 50, and 52°C for the most heat-tolerant larval stage were estimated using a 0.5th order kinetic model. Exposures needed for 95% mortality at 48°C were too long to be practical (67 min), but increasing treatment temperatures to 50 and 52°C resulted in more useful exposure times of 8 and 1.3 min, respectively. Red flour beetle was more sensitive to changes in treatment temperature than previously studied moth species, resulting in red flour beetle being the most heat-tolerant species at 48°C, but navel orangeworm, Amyelois transitella (Walker), being most heat tolerant at 50 and 52°C. Consequently, efficacious treatments for navel orangeworm at 50-52°C also would control red flour beetle.

Keywords: heat treatments; red flour beetle; radio frequency; dried fruits; tree nuts

Document Type: Research article