Pest Management Science (2019) 75, 3153-3159

Zsófia Lohonyai, József Vuts, Zsolt Kárpáti, Sándor Koczor, Michael J. Domingue, József Fail, Michael A. Birkett, Miklós Tóth and Zoltán Imrei (2019)
Benzaldehyde: an alfalfa-related compound for the spring attraction of the pest weevil Sitona humeralis (Coleoptera: Curculionidae)
Pest Management Science 75 (12), 3153-3159
Abstract:
BACKGROUND
Sitona weevils (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) are a species complex comprising pests of many leguminous crops worldwide, causing damage to young plants as adults and to rootlets as larvae, resulting in significant yield losses. Timely detection of migrating adult weevils is needed to determine when deployment of control measures becomes necessary. With the aim of developing plant volatile-based lures for Sitona spp. detection, we investigated the responses of S. humeralis to host plant-related aromatic compounds.
RESULTS
In olfactometer studies, both male and female S. humeralis responded positively to the odour of alfalfa flowers, a source of aromatic volatiles. In single sensillum recordings, basiconic sensilla located on the third and fourth terminal segments of the antennal club of both sexes were found to respond to benzaldehyde at doses of 10^-5 and 10^-4 g, suggesting that the weevil is able to detect this compound at the peripheral sensory level. In field studies, S. humeralis was attracted to benzaldehyde in the spring, but not in the autumn.
CONCLUSION
Benzaldehyde, as described in this study, may be a suitable candidate for the development of monitoring tools for S. humeralis.
(The abstract is excluded from the Creative Commons licence and has been copied with permission by the publisher.)
Link to article at publishers website
Database assignments for author(s): József Vuts, Zsolt Kárpáti, Sándor Koczor, Michael J. Domingue, Jozsef Fail, Michael A. Birkett, Miklós Tóth, Zoltán Imrei

Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
pheromones/attractants/traps

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Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
	Sitona humeralis	Alfalfa/lucerne (Medicago sativa)