The side‐effects of three neem formulations (Neem‐Amin EC, Stardoor and B.P. 20/S) were tested on the mirid predator Macrolophus caliginosus Wagner in the laboratory. Direct toxicity tests on 1st instar nymphs exposed to fresh dry residues on glass plates at different doses demonstrated that all the products are harmful to the insects with LD50 values much lower than the maximum recommended rate (1.217, 0.264, 1.083 mg a.i./l instead of 15, 31.5 and 80 mg a.i./l for Neem‐Amin EC, Stardoor and B.P. 20/S, respectively). Moreover a reduction of fecundity of the surviving females was assessed with Neem‐Amin EC and B.P. 20/S. Persistence tests were carried out on sharp pepper plants treated at the maximum recommended rate. High mortality was recorded when the insects were introduced onto the plants just after the treatment, but no significant differences compared with the controls were observed 5 days after the treatment and any consequence on the fecundity of surviving females was detected. Our experiments showed how azadirachtin can be noxious to M. caliginosus, but the short persistence makes this active ingredient a promising solution in integrated pest management programmes, when a lapse of time is guaranteed between the treatment and the introduction of the predator.
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Tedeschi et al. (2001) studied this question.