Abstract
Author(s): Ahdin Gassa* and Muhammad Junaid
Tropical yam, Dioscorea hispida Dennst, has bitter taste and rich chemical poisonous properties that may have a promising rat pest control. In this study, herbal rodenticide formulated with yam-tuber (locally named as Salapa; gadung; generally known as starch tuber). Dioscorea hispida was evaluated in terms of rat population control in rice farm. Finding an effective formulation would be massively disseminated on farm scale. The study was designed with completely random design consisting of three treatments such as 300 g, 600 g and 900 g of yam-tuber with three replications and a control. The results showed that mice behaviours fed baits were slow motion movement, quiet stay, shaking, paralysis before death. Tropical yam tuber formulated stimulates numbers of diet, body weight and mortality. The higher dosage was given, the more significant effect had. Males fed in average of baits; 2.35 g (300 g dosage), 1.94 g (600 dosage) and 1.81 g (900 g dosage) while females were 2.31 g, 2.00 g and 1.87 g bait. Body weight measurement in males were 4,16 g (300 g dosage), 3.54 g (600 dosage) and 3.26 g (900 dosage) while females were 4.73 g, 4.04 g and 2.77 g respectively. Mortality were initially found in the sixth, fourth and second day but 100% killed specimens were recorded in the twelfth (300 g dosage), the ninth (600 g dosage) and the fifth (900 g dosage) day.
