Efficacy of different light-emitting diodes (LEDs) attached to yellow sticky cards to capture the whitefly trialeurodes vaporariorum = Eficacia de diferentes diodos emisores de luz (LEDs) unidos a trampas adhesivas amarillas para la captura de la mosca blanca Trialeurodes vaporariorum

Abstract

Since adult insects respond to particular wavelengths, some investigations have proposed to use such behavior as potential target for novel monitoring and pest control tools.Yellow sticky cards have been commonly used for monitoring whiteflies population in open-fields as well as in greenhouses. However, the attractiveness depends on various factors such as the reflected intensity (brightness) and the hues of yellow color (wavelength) of the trap surface, which is often influenced by environmental conditions and may sometimes affect the capture of white flies.There fore, the use of light emitting diodes (LEDs) can be a significant complementary tool to strengthen attractiveness and the selectivity of these cards. This research was carried out to investigate the efficacy of the yellow sticky traps equipped with LEDs in the capturing mechanism of adult whiteflies Trialeurodes vaporariorum (Westwood) (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae). This study has taken place in a glass little greenhouse at the Argentine Agricultural Experiment Station (EEA) of the National Institute for Agricultural Technology (INTA) of Concordia, Province of Entre Rios (Argentina), where rearing insect cages were placed together with tobacco plants, Solanum tabacum L. and beans Phaseolus vulgaris L. from June to July, 2013. The yellow sticky traps covered an area of 64cm2and were supplemented with LED sof different wavelengths, namely green LEDs (525 nm), UV (380 nm) and without LED sas control treatment. The trials showed that adults of T. vaporariorum on average preferred (α>0,05) traps equipped with green LEDs (525nm),which could have a promising use in greenhouses for the identification, monitoring and control of whiteflies

Teniendo en cuenta que algunos adultos de insectos muestran preferencia a ciertas longitudes de onda, se ha considerado este comportamiento para desarrollar herramientas de monitoreo y estrategias de control de insectos plaga. Como ejemplo de ello, las tarjetas adhesivas amarillas han sido ampliamente usadas para monitorear población de moscas blancas a campo como invernadero. Este estudio tuvo como objetivo evaluar la efectividad de trampas adhesivas amarillas provistas con luces emitidas por diodos (LEDs) para el trampeo de adultos moscas blancas Trialeurodes vaporariorum (Westwood) (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae). Los ensayos se llevaron a cabo en la EEA INTA Concordia en condiciones de umbráculo, donde se ubicaron jaulas de cría con plantas de tabaco, Solanum tabacum (L.) y poroto, Phaseolus vulgaris L. desde Junio hasta Julio del 2013. Las trampas adhesivas amarillas tuvieron una superficie de 64cm2 provistas con (LEDs) de diferentes longitudes de onda promedio (525 nm verde y 380 nm UV) y sin LED como testigo. Los ensayos mostraron que los adultos de mosca blanca fueron significativamente (p >0,05) más atraídos por las trampas equipadas con LED 525nm verde (134 ± 7,4 adultos/tarjeta) comparadas con trampas equipadas con LED 380 nm UV (105 ± 7,4 adultos/tarjeta) y trampas sin LED (85,17 ± 7,4 adultos/tarjeta). Estos resultados muestran que los adultos de T. vaporariorum son atraídos a trampas dotadas con LED verde, las cuales podrían tener un promisorio uso en invernadero como detección, monitoreo y control de mosca blanca.