Insecticide Resistance Development in the Filth Fly Pupal Parasitoid, Spalangia cameroni (Hymenoptera: Pteromalidae), Using Laboratory Selections

Filth flies remain one of the most prevalent pest groups affecting the animal production industry. Spalangia spp. and Muscidifurax spp. are beneficial parasitic wasps that often are utilized to manage filth fly populations such as house flies, Musca domestica L. (Diptera: Muscidae), and stable flies, Stomoxys calcitrans (L.) (Diptera: Muscidae). These wasps search for filth fly pupae as hosts in areas potentially treated with insecticides, which may result in nontarget insecticide selection effects. However, research regarding resistance development in parasitic wasps such as S. cameroni Perkins (Hymenoptera: Pteromalidae) is limited. Therefore, a study was conducted to determine the potential of S. cameroni to develop resistance to the commonly used insecticide permethrin, as well as compare permethrin susceptibility among several S. cameroni strains. After 10 selected generations, susceptibility was significantly lower for the selected strain when compared with that of its unselected parent strain. A comparison of several parasitoid strains collected from different U.S. states indicated that permethrin susceptibility was not significantly different between a baseline strain and more recently established field strains. The potential implications of this previously unrecognized nontarget insecticide exposure effect on filth fly parasitoids are discussed.