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Attraction of the Redbay Ambrosia Beetle, Xyleborus glabratus, to Avocado, Lychee, and Essential Oil Lures

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Abstract

The redbay ambrosia beetle, Xyleborus glabratus Eichhoff, is an exotic wood-boring insect that vectors the mycopathogen responsible for laurel wilt, a lethal vascular disease of trees in the Lauraceae. High mortality has occurred in native Persea species in the southeastern U.S., and the vector-pathogen complex poses an imminent threat to the production of commercial avocado, P. americana, in south Florida. There is a critical need for effective attractants to detect, monitor, and control this invasive pest. This study combined field tests and laboratory bioassays to evaluate the response of female X. glabratus to host-based volatiles from wood of avocado (cultivars of West Indian, Guatemalan, and Mexican races); from wood of lychee (Litchi chinensis, a presumed non-host that is high in the sesquiterpene α-copaene, a putative attractant); and to commercial lures containing manuka and phoebe oils, two reported attractive baits. Volatile collections and GC-MS analyses were performed to quantify the sesquiterpene content of test substrates. In the field, traps baited with lychee wood captured more beetles than those with wood from avocado cultivars; traps baited with phoebe oil lures captured more beetles than those with manuka oil lures (the current monitoring tool). In field and laboratory tests, X. glabratus did not show a preference among avocado races in either attraction or host acceptance (initiation of boring). In choice tests, lychee was more attractive than avocado initially, but a higher percentage of beetles bored into avocado, suggesting that lychee emits more powerful olfactory/visual cues, but that avocado contains more of the secondary cues necessary for host recognition. Emissions of α-copaene, β-caryophyllene, and α-humulene were correlated with field captures, and lychee wood may be a source of additional semiochemicals for X. glabratus.

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Acknowledgments

We gratefully acknowledge Jorge Sanchez, David Long, Ricardo Joseph, Mike Winterstein (USDA-ARS; Miami, FL), and Stephen McLean (Univ. Florida; Gainesville, FL) for technical assistance; Kate Okins and Patti Anderson (FDACS-DPI; Gainesville, FL) for identifications of ambrosia beetles and Persea, respectively; Ray Schnell (USDA-ARS; Miami, FL) for advice on avocado germplasm samples; Bud Mayfield (USDA-Forest Service; Asheville, NC), Lukasz Stelinski (Univ. Florida; Lake Alfred, FL), and two anonymous referees for critical reviews of the manuscript; and Connie Rightmire (St. John’s River Water Management District; Palatka, FL) for assistance in obtaining a special use permit for the Lochloosa Wildlife Conservation Area. This work was supported in part by the USDA-ARS National Plant Disease Recovery System, a NIFA Critical Issues Grant, and the Florida Avocado Administrative Committee. This report presents the results of research only; mention of a proprietary product does not constitute an endorsement by the USDA.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. USDA-ARS, Subtropical Horticulture Research Station, Miami, FL, 33158, USA

    Paul E. Kendra, Wayne S. Montgomery, Jerome Niogret, Nancy D. Epsky & Robert R. Heath

  2. Tropical Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Homestead, FL, 33031, USA

    Jorge E. Peña

  3. Department of Entomology and Nematology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA

    John L. Capinera & Gurpreet Brar

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  1. Paul E. Kendra
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  2. Wayne S. Montgomery
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Correspondence to Paul E. Kendra.

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Kendra, P.E., Montgomery, W.S., Niogret, J. et al. Attraction of the Redbay Ambrosia Beetle, Xyleborus glabratus, to Avocado, Lychee, and Essential Oil Lures. J Chem Ecol 37, 932–942 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10886-011-9998-0

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