Factors affecting the efficacy of a vinegar trap for Drosophila suzikii (Diptera; Drosophilidae)

Abstract

Drosophila suzukii, Matsumura, is a relatively new pest in the United States attacking a variety of fruit crops. Studies were conducted to develop a standardized, economical trap for monitoring. Laboratory bioassays found that flies were attracted to dark colours ranging from red to black. Similarly, fly catches in 237‐ml plastic ‘spice’ jars with ten 0.48‐cm holes and baited with apple cider vinegar were significantly higher in jars with red or black than white caps. The use of an alternating set of three, horizontal red, black and red bands (‘Zorro’ trap) significantly increased fly catches compared with the use of all‐red or all‐black strips. This increase was associated with a significantly higher proportion of flies first landing on the side near the openings of the trap instead of on the cap with the ‘Zorro’ trap compared with the other traps. Laboratory data were used to develop a predictive model to define total fly capture as a function of trap colour/colour pattern, cumulative area of entry holes and the length of the trapping portion of the trap. Total fly catches by the ‘Zorro’ trap were compared with other red and clear plastic traps in five field trials conducted in several cultivated and uncultivated sites. Comparisons included a commercial red‐capped 200‐ml trap with two 0.63‐cm holes, an all‐red spice jar with ten 0.48‐cm holes and clear and red 473‐ml and clear 946‐ml plastic cups with six or ten 0.48‐ or 0.63‐cm holes. The model was successfully validated, suggesting that performance of cup traps can be predicted based on a few characteristics. The current ‘Zorro’ trap did not catch most of the flies among trap designs, but showed some advantages, including the durability and potential to recycle the plastic, small size, commercial availability and its greater selectivity for D. suzukii than the other traps tested.

Trap Designs for Monitoring <I>Drosophila suzukii</I> (Diptera: Drosophilidae)

“…Caged choice bioassays showed D. suzukii was more likely to be first attracted to black, red, and burgundy cards than to yellow cards (Basoalto et al 2013). However, field studies, including the current one, indicate D. suzukii's preference for red over yellow does not extend to the field.…”

“…One element of this research has been whether a color preference exists that can improve the efficiency of early season traps, which are important in establishing economic thresholds. Cage experiments offering choices between cards of 9 colors showed that darker colors attracted D. suzukii more than lighter colors (Basoalto et al 2013). Significantly more flies landed first on red, burgundy, and black cards than white, yellow, and light blue cards.…”

Comparison of a Synthetic Chemical Lure and Standard Fermented Baits for TrappingDrosophila suzukii(Diptera: Drosophilidae)

“…Undoubtedly, many types of alterations to trap design might be evaluated as possible improvements over the current traps used in this study. For example, a recent study showed the importance of colors and visual patterns on the efÞciency of trapping D. suzukii by using traps baited with ACV (Basoalto et al 2013).…”

Effect of Trap Design, Bait Type, and Age on Captures of <I>Drosophila suzukii</I> (Diptera: Drosophilidae) in Berry Crops

“…Yellow has been shown to be attractive for many insects including plant-feeding dipterans because it constitutes a foliage-type stimulus (Prokopy and Owens 1983). Recent laboratory studies investigating differences in color preference for spotted wing drosophila showed a higher afÞnity toward darker colors such as red, burgundy, and black compared with lighter colors like white and light blue (Basoalto et al 2013). However, Þeld studies showed that clear traps can be just as effective as red traps of the same design in a number of spotted wing drosophila host fruits .…”

“…Several types of traps have been tested for spotted wing drosophila including handmade plastic cups with 1 to 10 entry holes (the most commonly recommended), traps with mesh entries, and plastic cups with tents to provide shade and prevent water from entering (Kanzawa 1939, Wu et al 2007. Dome traps and commercial "spice" jar traps have also been evaluated (Landolt et al 2012a, Basoalto et al 2013) with varying degrees of success. Other trap modiÞcations include the addition of a yellow sticky card hanging inside the trap and odorless dish detergent to the drowning solution to help prevent ßy escape (Landolt et al 2012a,b;Lee et al 2012;Van Timmeren and Isaacs 2013).…”