Trapping studies with dermestid sex pheromones

Abstract

The effectiveness of dermestid sex pheromone-baited traps as tools for the survey and detection of insect populations, was evaluated at 3 locations in Milwaukee, WI. Traps were constructed of single-backed corrugated paper and were treated with malathion. The pheromones used were megatomoic acid, the sex pheromone of the black carpet beetle, Attagenus megatoma (F.), and the Z -alcohol component of the Trogoderma inclusum LeConte pheromone. Traps treated with the pheromones caught significantly more target insects when compared to control traps.