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ARS Home » Pacific West Area » Hilo, Hawaii » Daniel K. Inouye U.S. Pacific Basin Agricultural Research Center » Tropical Crop and Commodity Protection Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #296487
Title: Improving trapping systems for early detection and eradication of fruit flies (Diptera: Tephritidae) in California

Author
item Vargas, Roger
item HAVILAND, DAVID - University Of California - Cooperative Extension Service
item FABER, BEN - University Of California - Cooperative Extension Service
item KABASHIMA, JOHN - University Of California - Cooperative Extension Service
item GRAFTON-CARDWELL, BETH - University Of California - Cooperative Extension Service
item MORSE, JOSEPH - University Of California - Cooperative Extension Service

Submitted to: Citrograph
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 5/1/2013
Publication Date: 6/15/2013
Citation: Vargas, R.I., Haviland, D., Faber, B., Kabashima, J., Grafton-Cardwell, B., Morse, J. 2013. Improving trapping systems for early detection and eradication of fruit flies (Diptera: Tephritidae) in California. Citrograph. 4(4):28-34.

Interpretive Summary: Early detection and eradication methods for accidental introductions of invasive fruit flies in the United States involve deployment of large numbers of traps (> 30,000 sites in California) baited with the highly attractive male specific lures to detect such pests as Mediterranean fruit fly, melon fly, and oriental fruit fly. Current methods employ liquid lures with liquid insecticides that pose environmental and worker safety challenges. As a result, replacing liquid mixtures with safer alternatives for detection, monitoring and control without compromising performance levels has been a primary goal of the Hawaii Fruit Fly Area-Wide Pest Management (AWPM) program. An evaluation of a solid multi-lure and insecticide dispensers (Mallet TMR) is a logical step towards reducing labor, improving trap densities, and eliminating environmentally unfriendly pesticides associated with trapping multiple species within a large area. This study conducted at Agricultural Research Service (ARS), U.S. Department of Agriculture, Pacific Basin Agricultural Research Center, Hilo, Hawaii, assessed the performance of Mallet TMR with standard detection methods used in California and Florida in Hawaii. In survey trials, captures of Mediterranean fruit fly, melon fly, and oriental fruit fly with Mallet TMR wafers were equal to the standard detection methods. Our results provide promising evidence for eliminating the use of hard to handle liquid lures and hazardous organophosphate insecticides by consolidating “attract & kill” into multi-lure insecticidal wafers. Besides environmental benefits, the possibility of consolidating detection traps in large survey programs could dramatically reduce labor costs associated with deployment of numerous traps. Labor costs and deployment of traps is the biggest expense of large survey programs.

Technical Abstract: Solid Mallet TMR (trimedlure [TML], methyl eugenol [ME], raspberry ketone [RK]) wafers and Mallet CMR (ceralure, ME, RK, benzyl acetate) wafers impregnated with DDVP insecticide were evaluated in traps as potential detection and male annihilation devices. Comparisons were made with 1) liquid lure and insecticide formulations, 2) solid cones and plugs with an insecticidal strip, and 3) solid single and double lure wafers impregnated with DDVP for captures of Mediterranean fruit fly, Ceratitis capitata (Wiedemann), oriental fruit fly, Bactrocera dorsalis (Hendel), and melon fly, B. cucurbitae (Coquillett) in Hawaii. Bucket and Jackson traps were tested in a coffee plantation near Eleele, HI (high density population) and avocado orchards near Kona, HI (low to moderate population density). In male annihilation trials near Eleele, HI captures in AWPM traps with Mallet TMR wafers were equal to any other solid lure (single or double) except the Mallet ME wafer. In survey trials near Kona, captures of C. capitata, B. cucurbitae, and B. dorsalis with Mallet TMR wafers were equal to those for the standard TML, ME, and C-L traps used in Florida and California. A solid Mallet TMR wafer is more convenient to handle, safer, and may be used in place of several individual lure and trap systems, potentially reducing costs of large survey and detection programs in Florida and California, and male annihilation programs in Hawaii.