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A tale of two trapping methods: Helicoverpa spp. (Lepidoptera, Noctuidae) in pheromone and light traps in Australian cotton production systems

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 May 2010

G.H. Baker*
Affiliation:
CSIRO Entomology & Cotton Catchment Communities Cooperative Research Centre: GPO Box 1700, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia
C.R. Tann
Affiliation:
Locked Bag 59, Narrabri, NSW 2390, Australia
G.P. Fitt
Affiliation:
Long Pocket Laboratories, 120 Meiers Rd, Indooroopilly, Qld 4068, Australia
*
*Author for correspondence Fax: +61 2 6246 4000 E-mail: [email protected]

Abstract

Pheromone and light traps have often been used in ecological studies of two major noctuid pests of agriculture in Australia, Helicoverpa armigera and H. punctigera. However, results from these two methods have rarely been compared directly. We set pheromone and light traps adjacent to or amongst cotton and various other crops for 10–11 years in the Namoi Valley, in northern New South Wales, Australia. Catches in pheromone traps suggested a major peak in (male) numbers of H. punctigera in early spring, with relatively few moths caught later in the summer cropping season. In contrast, (male) H. armigera were most abundant in late summer. Similar trends were apparent for catches of both male and female H. armigera in light traps, but both sexes of H. punctigera were mostly caught in mid-summer. For both species, males were more commonly caught than females. These catch patterns differed from some previous reports. At least three generations of both species were apparent in the catches. There was some evidence that the abundance of later generations could be predicted from the size of earlier generations; but, unlike previous authors, we found no positive relationships between local winter rainfall and subsequent catches of moths, nor did we find persuasive evidence of correlations between autumn and winter rainfall in central Australia and the abundance of subsequent 1st generation H. punctigera moths. Female H. punctigera were consistently more mature (gravid) and more frequently mated than those of H. armigera. Overall, our results highlight the variability in trap catches of these two species and question the use of trap catches and weather as predictors of future abundance in cropping regions.

Type
Research Paper
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2010

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