Chemical composition and anti-termitic activity of essential oil from Canarium schweinfurthii Engl

•The investigated essential oil from Canarium schweinfurthii is a potent termiticide.•The oil consists mostly (96%) of monoterpenes.•The individual terpenes were tested and show high termiticidal activity.•The oil's composition is strongly variable between different harvesting locations.

An essential oil extract from resin of Canarium schweinfurthii from Sango Bay Area, Southern Uganda, was prepared by steam distillation. The chemical composition of the oil was analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy. Monoterpenes were the main constituents. The oil's composition was found to be different from previously reported C. schweinfurthii oils from Central African Republic, Cameroon and Gabon. The oil was tested for anti-termitic activity against Macrotermes bellicosus and found to be highly potent with an LC50 (48 h) of 1.12 mg/g. Commercial samples of some of the oil's major constituents (γ-terpinene, α-phellandrene, p-cymene and sabinene) were tested individually and showed high anti-termitic activity.