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ARS Home » Pacific West Area » Wapato, Washington » Temperate Tree Fruit and Vegetable Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #155330
Title: TRAPPING THE MEAL MOTH, PYRALIS FARINALIS L. (LEPIDOPTERA:PYRALIDAE) WITH ACETIC ACID AND 3-METHYL-1-BUTANOL

Author
item Landolt, Peter

Submitted to: Journal of Kansas Entomological Society
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 7/21/2005
Publication Date: 7/1/2005
Citation: Landolt, P.J. 2005. Trapping the meal moth, Pyralis farinalis L. (Lepidoptera:Pyralidae) with acetic acid and 3-methyl-1-butanol. Journal of Kansas Entomological Society. 78(3):293-295.

Interpretive Summary: Because of continued concern with adverse environmental and human health effects of many pesticides in use, new methods and approaches are needed to control insect pests of tree fruits. Chemical attractants for insect pests are useful for trapping or killing targeted species and are widely used tools in IPM systems. Researchers at the USDA-ARS laboratory in Wapato, Washington are studying the use of acetic acid with 3-methyl-1-butanol as an attractant for several moth pests of tree fruit crops. It was found that additional species of moths, including the meal snout moth, are attracted to this lure, confounding efforts to monitor specific orchard pests and requiring sorting and identifying of the insects captured in monitoring traps. The meal snout moth is preferentially attracted to a higher release rate of these chemicals than are the orchard pests. These results will help interpret data from monitoring traps in orchards and will aid efforts to design more specific monitoring lures, to minimize interference from non-target insects.

Technical Abstract: Adult meal snout moths, Pyralis farinalis L., were captured in traps baited with the combination of acetic acid and 3-methyl-1-butanol. In an evaluation of acetic acid and 3-methyl-1-butanol tested individually versus the two chemicals presented together in traps, significant numbers of meal snout moths were captured only with the combination of chemicals. Numbers of moths in traps increased with greater amounts of the two chemicals released, when dispensed from polypropylene vials. Both sexes of the meal snout moth were consistently trapped in response to acetic acid and 3-methyl-1-butanol. This lure may provide a useful means of monitoring or baiting females of Pyralis farinalis in pest situations.