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Title: ROLE OF FOOD AND STRUCTURAL COMPLEXITY ON CAPTURE OF TRIBOLIUM CASTANEUM (HERBST) (COLEOPTERA: TENEBRIONIDAE) IN SIMULATED WAREHOUSES

Author
item Toews, Michael
item Arthur, Franklin
item Campbell, James - Jim

Submitted to: Environmental Entomology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 10/6/2004
Publication Date: 2/1/2005
Citation: Toews, M.D., Arthur, F.H., Campbell, J.F. 2005. Role of food and structural complexity on capture of Tribolium castaneum (Herbst) (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae) in simulated warehouses. Environmental Entomology 34: 164-169.

Interpretive Summary: This study was initiated to more fully characterize the role of structure, sanitation, and trap location on capture of red flour beetles in pheromone-baited pitfall traps commonly used in insect monitoring programs. In pilot scale studies in small warehouses, we found that the presence of food significantly decreased both the number of insects captured in traps and the degree of correlation with the actual insect density. Placement of traps also had an important effect on number of insects captured. Warehouse managers and pest management professionals need to be aware that sanitation level influences the representativeness of trap-based insect monitoring programs.

Technical Abstract: Tribolium castaneum (Herbst) is a cosmopolitan pest of stored products, grain processing, and food warehouses. This study was initiated to more fully characterize the role of structure, sanitation, and trap location on capture of T. castaneum in pheromone-baited pitfall traps commonly used in insect monitoring programs. Food patches, spatial structure, and trap position were manipulated in pilot scale warehouses with a known density of insects. Absolute samples of insects inhabiting food patches correlated well with number of adult insects captured in traps in the immediate area. More eggs and larvae were recovered than pupae and adults in the food patches. Significantly greater quantities of insects were captured in traps placed in warehouses without food patches than those with food patches. Insects tended to be captured with greater frequency in the corners, along walls, and underneath shelves than in the middle of warehouses. Placement of concrete blocks in the middle of the warehouse did not increase the number of beetles captured in that area compared with warehouses without concrete blocks. Correlation between actual density and trap captures was stronger in warehouses without food patches suggesting that sanitation is an important part of pest monitoring.