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Pheromone-mediated mating disruption of Planococcus ficus (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae) in Tunisian vineyards: Effect on insect population dynamics

  • Ramzi Mansour EMAIL logo , Kaouthar Grissa-Lebdi , Mounir Khemakhem , Imed Chaari , Imen Trabelsi , Ameur Sabri and Santiago Marti
Published/Copyright: April 21, 2017
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Biologia
From the journal Biologia Volume 72 Issue 3

Abstract

The mating disruption technique using Checkmate® VMB-XL pheromone dispensers, in combination with imidacloprid-based insecticide treatments through drip irrigation, was tested against vine mealybug in Tunisian vineyards for the first time in the South Mediterranean area. The number of male vine mealybugs caught in traps of mating disruption (MD) plots was significantly lower than that of Non-MD plots, indicating that the application of Checkmate® VMB-XL significantly disrupted the male-female vine mealybug sexual communication. The cumulative effect of mating disruption on vine mealybug over time reached 120 days. Two months after Checkmate® VMB-XL application, the density of mealybug nymphs and adult females on grapevine basal leaves was significantly reduced in all MD plots. The obtained results provide evidence that the application of Checkmate® VMB-XL under Center-South Tunisian vineyard conditions proved to be very effective in confusing vine mealybug males and disrupting the mating process. The eventual future use of this technique in Integrated Pest Management programs in Tunisia is discussed herein.

Key words: vine mealybug; sexual behavior; mating disruption; population biology; biotechnological pest management; Mediterranean area

Acknowledgements

Checkmate® VMB-XL membrane dispensers, delta traps and vine mealybug sex pheromone lures were supplied by Suterra Europe Biocontrol (Valencia, Spain). We thank Koppert Biological Systems (Berkel en Rodenrijs, The Netherlands) for precious collaboration.

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Received: 2016-8-18
Accepted: 2017-1-21
Published Online: 2017-4-21
Published in Print: 2017-3-1

© 2017 Institute of Zoology, Slovak Academy of Sciences

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https://doi.org/10.1515/biolog-2017-0034
Keywords for this article
vine mealybug; sexual behavior; mating disruption; population biology; biotechnological pest management; Mediterranean area

Articles in the same Issue

  1. Cellular and Molecular Biology
  2. Purification and characterization of a highly alkaline pectin lyase from Fusarium lateritum MTCC 8794
  3. Cellular and Molecular Biology
  4. Effects of stress activated protein kinases on the expression of EST3 gene that encodes telomerase subunit in Saccharomyces cerevisiae
  5. Cellular and Molecular Biology
  6. Virulence genes in Escherichia coli strains isolated from urine of elderly patients
  7. Botany
  8. Genetic diversity of two annual Salsola species (Chenopodiaceae) among habitat types in desert plant communities
  9. Botany
  10. Leaf and stem anatomy of Micromeria species from the Central part of the Balkan Peninsula
  11. Botany
  12. Modulation in arsenic-induced lipid catabolism in Glycine max using proline, 24-epibrassinolide and diphenylene iodonium
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  14. N-(2-chloro-4-pyridyl)-N-phenylurea enhanced regeneration of Jatropha curcas leaf explants by high mineral acquisition
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  16. The colonization and succession patterns of the periphytic ciliate community in a temperate floodplain lake
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  18. Relative scaling and colouration of cercopodes in Branchipus schaefferi (Crustacea: Branchiopoda)
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  20. Temporal and bathymetric distribution of juveniles and adults of the speckled swimming crab Arenaeus cribrarius from coastal waters of southern Brazil
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  22. Pheromone-mediated mating disruption of Planococcus ficus (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae) in Tunisian vineyards: Effect on insect population dynamics
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  24. Exotic aphid species Brachycaudus divaricatae in Central Europe: Distribution, host specificity and molecular diversity
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  28. The effects of ethanolic herbal extracts and CuO nanoparticles on catalase, glutathione peroxidase and malondialdehyde in male diabetic rats
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