The cranberry fruitworm, Acrobasis vaccinii Riley (CFW), is a major pest of blueberries throughout the eastern United States. Currently, winged traps baited with female sex pheromone lures are used for monitoring moths. Experiments were conducted in highbush blueberry, Vaccinium corymbosum L., plantings at three sites in western Michigan to determine the effects of trap height and geographic location on captures of CFW. In studies to evaluate trap height, three treatments were evaluated, including traps positioned 1) at the uppermost part of the bush canopy (high), 2) within the canopy, ~20 cm from the uppermost part of the bush (medium), and 3) below the canopy, ~20 cm above the ground (low). In the location study, four treatments were evaluated, including traps placed 1) at the edge of the woods adjacent to blueberry plantings (woods), 2) in bushes adjacent to wooded areas (border), 3) in bushes located at the center of blueberry plantings (center), and 4) in bushes distant to wooded areas (end). Blueberries were analyzed for CFW larvae in order to correlate infestation rates with trap catch. Results from two sites in the variable height study indicate that “low” traps were significantly less effective in monitoring CFW moths compared with traps placed either within or at the top of bush canopies. At the third site, traps placed within adjacent woods and positioned high in the trees captured significantly more CFW moths compared with traps placed at lower heights, although such differences were not observed for traps located within the planting itself. In the migration study, traps located at the edge of the woods captured more CFW moths compared with other treatments. Traps placed distant to wooded areas captured consistently more CFW adults compared with traps placed in the center of the plantings.
Species 1: Lepidoptera Pyralidae Acrobasis vaccinii (cranberry fruitworm)
Keywords: cranberry fruitworm, highbush blueberries
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