ARS | Publication request: Differential captures of Rhagoletis pomonella (Diptera: Tephritidae) on four fluorescent yellow rectangle traps

Submitted to: Florida Entomologist
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: May 10, 2011
Publication Date: December 20, 2011
Citation: Yee, W.L., Goughnour, R.B. 2011. Differential captures of Rhagoletis pomonella (Diptera: Tephritidae) on four fluorescent yellow rectangle traps. Florida Entomologist. 94(4):998-1009.

Interpretive Summary: The apple maggot fly is an important quarantine pest of apples in the Pacific Northwest of the U.S. Traps are crucial for identifying where flies are located and thus can be used to prevent their spread into commercial apple orchards. Personnel at the Yakima Agricultural Research Laboratory in Wapato, WA, determined which sticky yellow rectangle trap is most attractive to apple maggot flies so that it can be used in fly monitoring surveys. They found that the Alpha Scents Yellow Card caught more flies than the Pherocon, Multigard, and Olson traps, and suggest that trap color and fluorescence differences may explain differential captures on the traps. These results identify a trap that may be better than other yellow rectangle traps at determining the presence of flies near orchards, as well as possible factors that can be used to develop even more attractive traps.

Technical Abstract: Four commercial sticky fluorescent yellow rectangle traps differing in yellow color, fluorescence, and other features were compared for capturing apple maggot fly, Rhagoletis pomonella (Walsh), and R. zephyria Snow, two sibling species. Traps were the Alpha Scents Yellow Card (Alpha Scents), Pherocon® AM (Pherocon), Multigard AM (Multigard), and the Stiky™ Strips Insect Trap (Olson, small and large sizes), all baited with the same ammonium bicarbonate lure. The Alpha Scents trap is coated with hot melt pressure sensitive adhesive, which is tacky but usually does not adhere to hands as does the polybutene-based sticky gel on Pherocon and Multigard traps. The Alpha Scents trap captured significantly (1.3–3.6 times) more R. pomonella than Pherocon, Multigard, and small and large Olson traps. In a separate test, the Pherocon trap caught significantly (1.4 times) more R. pomonella than the Multigard trap (the Olson traps were not compared with these two traps). Different yellow colors and/or fluorescence likely caused the differential captures of R. pomonella. In contrast, R. zephyria was caught in similar numbers on Alpha Scents and Pherocon traps, suggesting R. zephyria is less selective for particular yellow colors and/or fluorescence than R. pomonella. However, Multigard traps caught the fewest R. zephyria. Because it caught the most R. pomonella and is easier to handle than other traps, the Alpha Scents Yellow Card may be the most useful of the traps tested for monitoring R. pomonella.