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Title: TERT-PENTYL 4(AND 5)-CHLORO-TRANS-2-METHYLCYCLOHEXANEXANECARBOXYLATE, A HIGHLY EFFECTIVE AND PERSISTENT MALE SPECIFIC ATTRACTANT FOR THE MEDITERRANEAN FRUIT FLY (DIPTERA: TEPHRITIDAE)

Author
item Demilo, Albert
item Cunningham, Roy
item MCGOVERN, TERRENCE - DECEASED

Submitted to: Journal of Entomological Sciences
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/2/1998
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary: Pentamedlure (PML), an analog of trimedlure (TML) the standard lure used to detect, monitor and control populations of the Mediterranean fruit fly (medfly), was field evaluated for its attractiveness to the medfly when applied to cotton wick dispensers. Results from tests in a macadamia nut orchard in Keaau, HI using released, sterile, flies showed PML catches were comparable to TML catches early in the test and that PML caught for a longer period time than TML. Data also showed that wicks with low doses of PML out-caught wicks loaded with as much as 200 times more TML. Field tests in the Kona district in Hawaii, involving a natural population of medflies, showed that while PML was less effective than TML in initial catches, it out-lasted TML's attractiveness by an appreciable margin. These studies show that PML is a promising lure that could replace TML in certain areas and situations, i.e., applications that require potent and long lasting lures and inexpensive dispensing systems. Information derived from these studies will assist scientists involved in developing cheap and useful trapping systems and will help and federal and state action agencies that constantly seek alternative lures to better manage the medfly.

Technical Abstract: The attraction of Ceratitis capitata (Wiedemann) to tert-pentyl 4(and 5)-chloro-trans-2-methylcyclohexanecarboxylate (pentamedlure) was compared to its attraction to trimedlure to establish its suitability as a possible alternate for trimedlure in applications that use a cotton dental-roll wick dispenser. Results from field tests with released sterile C. capitata showed that pentamedlure, applied to cotton dental roll wicks, was comparable to trimedlure in attractiveness and was more persistent. Batch to batch variations in isomer distribution of pentamedlure appeared to have little effect on attraction. Dose-response data showed that pentamedlure, applied between 0.02-0.32 ml/wick, initially caught more flies than trimedlure at 2 ml/wick, but differences were typically not significant. Trimedlure catches within a natural population of wild C. capitata during the first week were significantly higher than pentamedlure catches at a comparable dose (0.2 m lure/wick). However, pentamedlure-treated wicks were 2-3 times more persistent than wicks treated with trimedlure.