Pharmaceutica Analytica Acta

Abstract

Diflubenzuron Effectiveness in Cattle Tick(Rhipicephalus Boophilus microplus) Control in Field Conditions

Renato Andreotti, Marcos Valerio Garcia, Jaqueline Matias, Jacqueline Cavalcante Barros, Georgia Mode Magalhaes, Francisca de Assis Ardson and Andre Rangel de Abreu Aguirre

Considerable economic losses are currently caused by Rhipicephalus microplus, a cattle ectoparasite occurring in tropical and subtropical areas. Significant efforts to control this tick are made in most of the bovine producing countries, mainly with acaricides. Chemical control, albeit predominant, has been hampered by poor utilization of active principles, leading to development of resistance. This work has the objective of evaluating the diflubenzuron activity as a larvicide in cattle tick control in the field conditions. Thirty females of the 3/4 Holstein x ¼ Zebu breed were used, half for each group during a year were, the control group and the group treated with diflubenzuron 3%, which was provided with the salt in the trough, available to all animals throughout the day. The animals were managed every 14 days for tick count, weight verification and to observe their well-being. Animals having above 100 engorged ticks were treated by spraying (DDVP – Diclorvós, 60 grams, Clorpirifós, 20 grams, and solution, 20 grams). Based on tick biology and histology the Diflubenzuron 3% did not affect the development of ticks that survived the parasitic phase. The effect is in the tick larvae only and the efficacy is about 54, 6% of protection using Diflubenzuron 3% in the salt. The use of acaricides when associated to diflubenzuron 3% reduce in 71% the use these acaricides and the cost of acaricide in aspersion represent when compared with diflubenzuron 3% only 7,9 %. The use of diflubenzuron 3% associated with chemical control is an effective proposal to cattle tick control with low contamination that should be thought by the production chain their cost/benefit taking into account the economic and environmental issues.