Abstract
Oxygen absorber (Ageless®), which have widely been used for protection from oxidation or molds in various foods, showed apparent lethal effect on four stored grain pests, Sitophilus zeamais, Tribolium castaneum, Callosobruchus chinensis, and Ephestia cautella and two clothes pests, Tinea pellionella and Anthrenus verbascii, when they were kept in O2-barrier packages containing the oxygen absorber and their food source. Tolerance level of the insects against low O2 conditions was shown to vary considerably with species and stages, the highest tolerance being shown by egg of S. zeamais which needed 12 days treatment with the oxygen absorbers for 100% mortality. As a sublethal effect of the oxygen absorbers, delay of adult eclosion was observed in S. zeamais. Application of the oxygen absorber to pest control was discussed.
