Mass trapping and mating disruption to control Cadra cautella (Walker)in a confectionary factory

Abstract: A mass trapping system was established in a chocolate factory to control Cadracautella, using plastic containers filled with water. In order to interfere with mating, a matingdisruption system was applied in a confined area. Results confirmed that water is a considerableattractant for almond moth: a great number of males and females were caught, while thepheromone traps, placed in the same areas, caught a limited number of males. The analysis offemales allowed to determine the mating status: the most part of caught females was mated; inthe area where mating disruption was applied the percentage of unmated females was higher ascompared with the control area. The use of water as mass trapping system and mating disruptionallow to eliminate large number of females and to reduce mating. Mass trapping and matingdisruption can be taken into account in the IPM program.