Commonly used triazole fungicides accelerate the metamorphosis of digger wasps (Hymenoptera: Spheciformes)

Heneberg, Petr; Bogusch, Petr

Commonly used triazole fungicides accelerate the metamorphosis of digger wasps (Hymenoptera: Spheciformes)

2022

Heneberg, Petr | Bogusch, Petr

Azole fungicides have been essential pillars of global food security since the commercialization of triadimefon. However, the potential for fungicides to induce sublethal effects on larval development and emergence from overwintering is underresearched. We hypothesized that contact exposure to field-realistic concentrations of a broad spectrum of triazole fungicides alters the pupation and metamorphosis of crabronid wasps. Therefore, triazole fungicides shape the hymenopteran communities in agrocenoses. We applied field-realistic concentrations of three triazole fungicides, difenoconazole, penconazole, and tebuconazole, to the defecated prepupae of Pemphredon fabricii (Hymenoptera: Crabronidae). We monitored their survival, pupation, and metamorphosis into adults, including the timing of these events. All three tested triazole fungicides altered the time to the metamorphosis into adults of P. fabricii prepupae compared to the vehicle-treated controls. This effect was concentration-independent within the recommended concentration ranges for foliar applications. However, the three triazole fungicides were not associated with any significant declines in overall survival. Thus, the commonly used triazole fungicides affect the synchronization of the metamorphosis into adults with the availability of food and nesting resources of the study species. The study compounds did not affect the survival, which agrees with previous studies of other azole fungicides, which revealed effects on survival only when used in combination with other compounds. Further research should address the multiplicative effects of the triazole fungicides with other agrochemicals on the timing of the metamorphosis of bees and wasps.

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