Location: Stored Product Insect and Engineering Research
Project Number: 3020-43000-034-004-S
Project Type: Non-Assistance Cooperative Agreement
Start Date: Jun 1, 2018
End Date: Feb 28, 2021
Objective:
The goal of this project is to establish the optimal surveillance tools for Khapra beetle, Trogoderma granarium in the field at food facilities where the species is already established (e.g. outside the U.S., in Greece). The experiments detailed below will determine the optimal trap, optimal kairomone attractant, and optimal pheromone attractant for Khapra beetle and related dermestids. These experiments cannot be performed at a field-level scale in the US, because Khapra beetle is considered a quarantine pest by APHIS, and the species is not yet established in the U.S. However, the species in increasingly intercepted at ports of entry in the U.S., and thus presents a significant threat to the post-harvest stored product industry in the U.S.
Approach:
There will be at least two experiments conducted. Experiment 1 will answer the questions 1) what trap is best, and 2) which kairomone lure is the best attractant? Three different traps (wall trap, box trap, dome trap) will be tested, along with four kairomone treatments (negative control, wheat germ, Trece oil, Insects Limited dermestid tablet bait). In a full factorial experiment, traps and lures will be paired and placed at commercial food facilities with a history of Khapra beetle infestation. A total of 2-3 transects of complete sets of the treatments will be deployed per site and checked every 2 weeks. At each check, the number of Khapra beetle and related dermestids will be recorded, and larvae will be preserved in alcohol for later genetic work.
Experiment 2 will answer the questions 1) which pheromone lure is better, and 2) do pheromone lures give us any benefit of detection at all, or is the kairmone bait sufficient? There will be two kairmone lures (wheat germ alone, best commercial lure from Experiment 1) and paired with four pheromone treatments (no pheromone, Trece Khapra beetle lure, Insects Limited Khapra beetle lure, and Insects Limited PantryPatrol gel) in a full factorial experiment according to the same methods outlined above.
Other additional experiments may be conducted as needed over the life of the agreement if both the Cooperator and ARS agree it is necessary to fulfill the scientific objectives.
