ABSTRACT
An artificial soil test was used to determine the LC50 values of carbaryl, chlorpyrifos, imidacloprid, cyfluthrin and fipronil against earthworms of the Pheretima group. For a 24-h interval, carbaryl was the most toxic to earthworms (LC50 = 77 mg kg-1), followed by imidacloprid (155 mg kg-1), cyfluthrin (351 mg kg-1), chlorpyrifos (390 mg kg-1) and fipronil (> 8550 mg kg-1) as the least toxic. For the 48-h and 7-day intervals, imidacloprid was the most toxic to earthworms (LC50 = 5 mg kg-1 and 3 mg kg-1 respectively), followed by carbaryl (16 mg kg-1; 9 mg kg-1), cyfluthrin (128 mg kg-1; 110 mg kg-1), chlorpyrifos (330 mg kg-1; 180 mg kg-1) and the least toxic was fipronil (> 8550 mg kg-1 both intervals). The surface application rates required to achieve these values are compared with the rates recommended for the control of turfgrass pests.
