Attraction ofPlecia nearctica(Diptera: Bibionidae) to Floral Lures Containing Phenylacetaldehyde

Abstract

The bibionid fly Plecia nearctica Hardy, com monly called the 'lovebug', is a widely recognized insect found alongside roadways in all southern states bordering the Gulf of Mexico as well as Georgia, and North and South Carolina (Den mark et al. 2010). In Florida, descriptions of this insect in large numbers coincide with peak sea sonal flight periods inApr-May and Aug-Sep, with a smaller third flight in Dec in southern Florida (Cherry & Raid 2000). While testing for attrac tiveness of floral-based lures to lepidopteran turf pests in 2011, we noticed a large number of P. nearctica adults in traps containing phenylac etaldehyde (PAA), an aromatic compound found in many foods and flowers. Previously described attractants for adult P. nearctica include automo bile exhausts irradiated with UV-light (Callahan & Denmark 1973; Callahan et al. 1985), localized heat sources (Whitesell 1974) and the aromatic oil anethole (Cherry 1998). However, information on the attractiveness of floral (food)-based lures has not been previously reported for this species. To investigate this further, we tested traps con taining different floral baits that are known attrac tants to noctuid and pyralid moths in central and southern Florida. Green delta-shaped sticky traps (Pherocon HID, Trece Inc., Adair, Oklahoma) sus pended from 1 m PCV poles (Fig. 1A) were placed