Attraction of the Black Turpentine Beetle (Coleoptera: Scolytidae) and Other Forest Coleoptera to Turpentine-baited Traps

Abstract

Traps baited with gum turpentine of southern pines and deployed in north Florida from 1980–1983 captured numerous adults of the black turpentine beetle (BTB), Dendroctonus terebrans (Olivier); pales weevil, Hylobius pales (Herbst); pitch-eating weevil, Pachylobius picivorus (Germar); Carolina pine sawyer, Monochamus carolinensis (Olivier); southern pine sawyer, M. titillator (F.); and southern pine engraver beetles, Ips spp. Ethanol had a synergistic effect when mixed with turpentine as a bait for the BTB, pales weevil, pitch-eating weevil, and sawyers. Maximum numbers of insects were captured by traps with black columns equipped with wick-type bait dispensers that released relatively large volumes of a mixture of turpentine and ethanol. Peak captures of the BTB occurred shortly after sunset on overcast days when windspeeds were less than 0.8 km/h. BTB, weevils, and sawyers were captured by traps during all but the coldest months of the year. Numbers of insects captured fluctuated throughout the year but there were from two to three distinct peak flight periods.