Seasonal Flight Activity of Grape Root Borer (Lepidoptera: Sesiidae) in Florida

Abstract

The seasonal flight activity of grape root borer, Vitacea polistiformis (Harris), was monitored with sticky traps baited with a 99:1 blend of the sex pheromone (E, Z)-2,13-octadecadienyl acetate and (Z, Z)-3,13-octadecadienyl acetate, at nine locations in Florida. In northern Florida, at Chattahoochee, Freeport, and Alachua, flight activity began in June or early July and continued through October. In central Florida, at Leesburg, Kathleen, and Alva, activity began in late July or early August and often continued into December. On the west coast, at Odessa, emergence began earlier (late June) than at central inland sites and ended by mid- to late November. On the east coast, at Fort Pierce, the first grape root borers were trapped in early May, and flight activity continued into December. On the lower east coast, at Miami, the first grape root borers were trapped in late July with flight activity continuing through December. A few moths were captured in Miami in January in both years that traps were operated.