Pheromones and other semio-chemicals in integrated production

Sex pheromones, semiochemicals, mating disruption, monitoring, environmentally safe insect management

Tasin M.

Vogt H.

The group has traditionally served as a liaison between basic research and practical application, with members drawn from academic and government research institutions, plant protection industry and extension services. Approximately 100 biologists and chemists from Europe and overseas regularly attend symposia and workshops. Contacts are maintained with the working groups on "Integrated Control in Viticulture and Integrated Plant Protection in Fruit Crops".

Development and promotion of the use of pheromones and semiochemicals for monitoring and detection, and for environmentally safe control of harmful insects.

Progress with insect control by mating disruption - towards more reliable and economic applications - necessitates the improvement in dispenser materials and methods to survey release rates, the measurement of airborne pheromone concentrations in the field, as well as field and laboratory tests on behavioural mechanisms.
Maintaining a supply of lures for monitoring and detection is a problem of growing concern. Some users complain about inefficiency and non-selectivity of traps found on the market. Chemists and entomologists cooperate in establishing standards for the chemical composition and behavioral activity of lures, and in assuring their availability.
A long-term study concerns agricultural production in the context of chemical ecology as it affects the entire consumer-crop-pest complex.

Insect control by synthetic pheromones has become a reality over the past decade. Mating disruption is used worldwide against up to 20 species, on more than 100,000 ha. In Europe, the largest applications are against the grapevine moths, Eupoecilia ambiguella and Lobesia botrana, and codling moth, Cydia pomonella. The use of pheromone traps for detection and monitoring is now a well-established part of most pest control programmes.
The "List of Sex Pheromones of Lepidoptera and Related Attractants" (published in 1986 and updated in 1992) which contains more than 2,500 literature entries and has become a widely used reference.

The proceedings of the group meetings are available at our website http://phero.net/iobc

Tasin M.