Disrupting mating of Lobesia botrana using sex pheromone aerosol devices

Abstract

Pheromone-mediated mating disruption (MD) is widely used as a control tool to manage the European grapevine moth (EGVM), Lobesia botrana. Most of the MD formulations are "passive" reservoir dispensers, which need to be used at a rather large number of units per hectare. A promising alternative is represented by automatic aerosol devices, releasing pheromone puffs at programmed time intervals. Herein, we investigated the effectiveness of MD aerosol product Isonet® L MisterX841 in reducing EGVM infestation on grape in comparison to the reference MD product Isonet® L and the grower's standard. Experiments were carried out over 2 years in two different study sites of Aragon region (Spain). EGVM male catches were monitored using traps baited with the female sex pheromone. The effectiveness of MD formulations against the three generations of EGVM was assessed by determining the percentage of infested bunches and the number of nests per bunch. As expected, a much greater amount of male catches in the grower's standard over Isonet® L MisterX841 and Isonet ® L was observed. No significant differences about EGVM male catches were found in vineyards where Isonet® L MisterX841 and Isonet® L were used. EGVM-infested bunches, as well as number of nests per bunch, were higher in the grower's standard, if compared to vineyards where we tested Isonet® L MisterX841 and Isonet® L. However, the employ of the latter led to a lower EGVM bunch infestation, if compared to Isonet® L MisterX841. Overall, the MD approach proposed here is effective against EGVM. These aerosol devices require a lower number of units per hectare if compared to hand-applied dispensers, saving labor costs and contributing to reduce plastic disposal in agricultural settings.

Keywords: Chemical ecology; European grapevine moth; Insect pest; Integrated pest management; Organic viticulture; Pesticide-free agriculture; Sexual pheromones; Tortricidae.