Efficiency of different traps and baits used in mass trapping ofMediterranean fruit fly Ceratitis capitata Wied. (Diptera: Tephritidae)

Abstract: The medfly is harmful to several fruit specie particularly the Citrus for which it’sthe major pest. The control of this pest is mainly chemical with relative effectiveness andmany undesirable effects. To reduce the use of pesticides, some alternatives are tried amongthem the mass-trapping technique. This one was tried in 2007 with 2 types of lures: theDiammonium Phosphate (DAP) and the three components ammonium acetate,trimethylamine and putrescine (AA, TMA, P). In 2009, 2 types of traps have been tested(Mac Phail and Moskisan) baited with (AA, TMA, P). The results shows that the lures (AA,TMA, P) captured twice more medflies than DAP and were much more selective towardsnon target insects, caught them with proportions of 3 et 74%, respectively. With the (AA,TMA, P) lures, the rate of punctured fruits obtained at harvest was lower than with DAP.Also, the 3 components were more practical in their use, and as costly as DAP. TheMoskisan traps had better catching performances than Mc Phail particularly when the medflypopulation’s level was high. Then the combination (Moskisan trap + AA, TMA,P lures),should be the more efficient for mass-trapping of medfly in Citrus orchards.