Evaluation of ABG-6208 (Thuringiensin) for Control of Northern Fowl Mite, 1987

Abstract White leghorn hens naturally infested with northern fowl mites were selected from a producing flock in San Bernardino County. Hens were 31 wk old, well-feathered and in good condition at the start of the test. They were housed in suspended wire cages (3 birds per 30 by 45 cm cage) in an open-sided house typical of this region. The flock had been treated with permethrin for mite control approximately 6 wk earlier, but mites persisted on some birds. Sixty hens were selected which had mite rating scores of 2 or higher (see table). Ten hens of the 60 had mite scores of 5 or higher (a high-level infestation). Four cages of birds (12 hens) were used for each treatment, and empty buffer cages separated each cage of test birds. Treatments were applied with a backpack sprayer at 45 p.s.i., spraying upward toward the vent region of each bird (40 ml per hen). The 3 mite scores for the hens in a particular cage were averaged, and the 4 cage means/date were used as replications in the analysis.