Enhancement of attraction of alpha-ionol to male Bactrocera latifrons (Diptera: Tephritidae) by addition of a synergist, cade oil.

Male lures are known for many tephritid fruit fly species and are often preferred over food bait based traps for detection trapping because of their high specificity and ability to attract flies over a wide area. Alpha-ionol has been identified as a male lure for the tephritid fruit fly Bactrocera latifrons (Hendel). The attraction of this compound to male B. latifrons individuals, however, is not as strong as is the attraction of other tephritid fruit fly species to their respective male lures. Cade oil, an essential oil produced by destructive distillation of juniper (Juniperus oxycedrus L.) twigs, synergizes the attraction of alpha-ionol to male B. latifrons. Catches of male B. latifrons at traps baited with a mixture of alpha-ionol and cade oil were more than three times greater than at traps baited with alpha-ionol alone. Substitution of alpha-ionol + cade oil for alpha-ionol alone in detection programs could considerably improve the chance of detecting invading or incipient populations of B. latifrons. However, detection programs should not rely solely on this lure but also make use of protein baited traps as well as fruit collections. Further work with fractions of cade oil may help to identify the active ingredient(s), which could help to further improve this male lure for B. latifrons.