Individual and combined toxic effects of cypermethrin and chlorpyrifos on earthworm.

Toxicities were assessed for a pyrethroid (cypermethrin) and an organophosphate insecticide (chlorpyrifos) individually and in combination. A series of tests were conducted on different responses (acute, chronic, behavioral) of earthworms of species Eisenia fetida andrei in the ecological risk assessment of these pesticides. The results showed that the toxicity of the mixture of cypermethrin and chlorpyrifos was significantly higher than either of these pesticides individually, especially on the earthworm's chronic responses. At a concentration of 5 mg/kg, the mixture caused significant reductions on the growth and reproduction rates of earthworms, but did not cause any significant effect when the individual was tested. The increase in toxicity of the pesticide mixture means that the use of toxicity data obtained exclusively from single-pesticide experiments may underestimate the ecological risk of pesticides that actually present in the field.