Large-scale mating disruption of Ephestia spp. and Plodia interpunctella in Czech Republic, Greece and Italy

Abstract

Field trials were carried out to evaluate the use of the pheromone (9Z,12E)-tetradecadienyl acetate (TDA/ZETA) for mating disruption (MD) of Pyralidae moths associated with stored products, in most cases the Raisin moth, Ephestia cautella (Walker), Mediterranean flour moth, Ephestia kuehniella Zeller and Indianmeal moth, Plodia interpunctella (Hubner). The experiments were conducted in the Czech Republic, Greece and Italy during 2007 and 2008 in storage facilities that varied in their size and type, and included flour mills, retail stores, storage rooms with currants and raw grain stores. After a summer pre-treatment monitoring period to assess moth population in, dispensers containing TDA were placed in the fall. Adjacent facilities without dispensers were used as control units. Pheromone-baited traps were used to monitor the population fluctuation of the pyralid moths during the entire experimental periods. The presence of MD dispensers notably reduced the number of adults found in the traps in comparison with control rooms. Monitoring of female oviposition, measured as number of hatched larvae in cups containing food, indicated that there was a reduction in the number of larvae in the areas with MD dispensers. The results of the present work indicate that the use of mating disruption is feasible against pyralid moths in storage facilities, and should be further evaluated as a component of an integrated pest management based control strategy.