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ARS Home » Pacific West Area » Wapato, Washington » Temperate Tree Fruit and Vegetable Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #351333
Research Project: New Technologies and Strategies to Manage the Changing Pest Complex on Temperate Fruit Trees

Location: Temperate Tree Fruit and Vegetable Research

Title: Importance of trap liner adhesive selection for male moth catch (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) with bisexual attractants

Author
item Knight, Alan
item Stewart, William
item BASOALTO, ESTEBAN - University Of Chile

Submitted to: Journal of Applied Entomology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 6/2/2018
Publication Date: 9/1/2018
Citation: Knight, A.L., Stewart, W.L., Basoalto, E. 2018. Importance of trap liner adhesive selection for male moth catch (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) with bisexual attractants. Journal of Applied Entomology. 142(8):731-744. https://doi.org/10.1111/jen.12528.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/jen.12528

Interpretive Summary: Effective, low-cost monitoring of tree fruit pests is an important component of developing integrated programs which can minimize the use of insecticides. Researchers at the USDA, ARS, Temperate Tree Fruit & Research Unit, Wapato, WA in collaboration with researchers in Austral University in Valdiva, Chile evaluated the effect of traps removable liners’ adhesive type on the ability of trapped female moths to lure males into the trap. It was determined that the adhesive type is an important factor influencing secondary male capture, and thus should be standardized to use trapping protocosl effectively to ascertain the need for supplemental insecticide programs. Information from this research supports the continued effort to develop even more effective lures that can be used in trap-based monitoring program for important moth pests in tree fruits.

Technical Abstract: Studies compared moth catches of three pests (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) of apple, Malus domestica Borkhausen, in delta traps using two different types of removable liners coated with either a sticky gel (SG) or a hot-melt pressure sensitive (HMPS) adhesive. Laboratory and field studies with Cydia pomonella (L.), Choristoneura rosaceana (Harris), and Grapholita molesta (Busck), demonstrated that traps with either liner, baited with a pair of virgin females can catch males, but at significantly different levels. Male moth catches in traps baited with two virgin females placed on the HMPS liner were significantly greater than on SG liners in the field for C. rosaceana, and G. molesta; but not for C. pomonella. Similar results were observed in a laboratory flight tunnel. Further studies demonstrated that this difference in moth catch between liners was not due to levels of female mortality, but instead was correlated with the occurrence of the female’s ventral abdomen surface becoming stuck in the adhesive. Studies showed that a significantly greater proportion of females of all species had their ventral abdomen stuck in the SG than HPMS adhesive on day 1, but only G. molesta and C. rosaceana on day 3. In addition, the tackiness of the two adhesives affected moth movement on the liner with males and females of all species moving farther on liners with SG than HMPS adhesive. A greater proportion of female G. molesta and C. pomonella were either stuck on their backs or on their sides on the SG than HMPS adhesive, and females in this position caught as many males as when upright and unstuck on the liner. These data demonstrate that adhesives can secondarily influence male moth catch on trap liners when used with bisexual attractants, and that adhesive type should be considered when developing action thresholds.