Attracting pollinators in atemoya: Commercial lures act synergistically when combined

Atemoya and other Annona species are delicious tropical and subtropical fruits. However, these plants tend to have low fruit-set due to inadequate pollination by small beetles, especially Nitidulidae. We established traps with two commercially available nitidulid lures (dusky sap beetle lure and date/fig blend lure) at the following four doses: zero lure, one lure, two lures and four lures. In addition, we set traps with both lures combined in equal proportions, at the following doses: zero lures, one lure each, two lures each, and four lures each. The date/fig blend lure attracted beetles at all doses, whereas the dusky sap beetle lure and the control attracted no beetles. Traps with both lures attracted more beetles and in a dose-dependent manner. The number of beetles trapped with the combination of lures was synergistic, i.e. much greater than the sum of the attraction of the two lures independently. These results are discussed as they pertain to increase fruit set, as well as improving size and fruit shape in atemoya and other Annona species.