Location: Temperate Tree Fruit and Vegetable Research
Project Number: 2092-22000-022-019-S
Project Type: Non-Assistance Cooperative Agreement
Start Date: May 1, 2019
End Date: Sep 30, 2023
Objective:
An objective of our project is to field screen possible pheromone compounds to determine which chemicals or blends are attractive to pestiferous click beetle species in several crop growing regions of the United States. A second objective is to identify new pheromone compounds from live unmated pestiferous click beetle females.
Approach:
Putative pheromone chemicals will be synthesized and provided to cooperators to be tested in agricultural habitats where pestiferous species of wireworms are prevalent, in multiple geographic and climatic regions. To identify new pheromone compounds, live virgin females will be obtained by rearing field-collected larvae to adults in the laboratory, individually, in plexiglass containers. Additionally, click beetles will be collected by sweep netting and live trapping. Volatiles will be collected from live beetles for ~1 week. If the beetles do not produce sufficient quantities of pheremone, volatiles will be collected from macerated female abdomen tips. Extracts will be analyzed by gas chromatography-electroantennography to locate likely pheromone compounds, which will then be identified by a combination of GC-mass spectrometry, GC retention indices, microchemical tests, and as needed microbore NMR spectrometry.
