Pheromones for managing insects in spruce seed orchards

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Pheromone Group

Dept of Biology

Pheromones for managing insects in spruce seed orchards

Wood production has a large socioeconomic role in Sweden and will also be important for the sequestration of carbon from the atmosphere in the future. Seed orchards serve an important role for the production of high-quality seeds and thus in the generation of new forests. However, insects are chronic pests and cause great losses in seed production.

This project aims at identifying the sex pheromones of the three major moth pests to be used for monitoring of their phenology, dispersal and population density in orchards. The potential for pheromone-mediated mating disruption will also be investigated.

The three species involved:

We will optimize our unpublished pheromone for Dioryctria abietella.
A pheromone for Cydia strobilella will also be identified, starting from pheromone candidates present in females in extremely small amounts. Population variation in pheromones will be investigated by means of chemical analysis, field trapping, and analysis of genetic markers.
The pheromone for Eupithecia abietaria will be identified.

Monitoring baits will be tested in the Nordic countries and the rest of Europe to optimize protocols for moth monitoring in seed orchards by use of attractive traps. Orchard managers should be able to use the traps without species identification problems. The research results will serve as basis for an IPM program. Training courses will be offered to the orchard managers. Pheromones for monitoring and mating disruption will be made commercially available.