Trapping strategies for monitoring seasonal flight activity of Cnestus mutilatus in Tennessee

Native to Asia, camphor shot borer, Cnestus mutilatus (Blandford), is an ambrosia beetle thatwas first detected in Mississippi in 1999 and now occurs across much of the eastern U.S. This tree and shrub infesting pest was first detected in Tennessee on April 25, 2008 near a Wayne County lumber facility and has since been detectedacross the state.  Its expanded range can be attributed in part to female CSB reproductive capacity, potential in the southeastern U.S. for multiple reproductive generations per year, and the dispersal capability of CSB that have been recorded flying 2 to 3 km. Cnestus mutilatus feeds on more than 20 plant families with representatives in at least 11 deciduous plant families, including ornamental tree hosts in Pinaceae, plus red maple, beech, black walnut, golden rain tree, sweetgum, sweetbay magnolia, tulip poplar, and white oak.  In commercial nurseries and landscapes, flowering dogwood andeastern redbudbranches have also been attacked, particularly when trees are under stress.Although nursery reports of plant injury have been limited, we anticipate that crop losses and aesthetic injury caused by C. mutilatus are under-reported as a consequence of incorrect diagnosis. Reports from Mississippi indicate that adult CSB flights begin in March, peak in April but continue through June, followed by a second, smaller peak in August and an end of the flight period in about September.  This report presents our efforts to optimize trapping methodologies for this non-native pest species and presents information about seasonal flight activity and efficiencies observed from several locations in middle and east Tennessee across 3 consecutive years comparing 3 trap types, differing deployment heights, and with inclusion of ethanol as a possible synergizing plant kairomone.