Monitoring Drosophila suzukii for action thresholds

Spotted wing drosophila, Drosophila suzukii, is a major direct pest of cherries in the west coast of the US.  Early monitoring traps were fabricated by researchers and consultants, and used liquid baits (apple cider vinegar or yeast-based).  The commercialization of monitoring is the next and important phase of assessing the usefulness of monitoring tools; there are currently several commercial lures available, as well as commercial traps.  While detection and phenology may still be important in newly invaded areas, the IPM implementation of traps will be for action thresholds.  This requires a trap that is both sensitive and reliable in order to establish treatment thresholds.  Studies carried out in 2014-2016 indicate that the lure from Trécé is highly selective for D. suzukii, but attracts a lower number of adults overall.  The Scentry lure is highly attractive, but not selective for D. suzukii, presenting a problem for end users.  Tests of the AlphaScents white and yellow sticky card trap revealed a high level of species selectivity, but also sex specificity (male-biased); this is the sex most easily recognized on a sticky trap.  These are useful attributes in promoting the utility of traps, as long as the issue of sensitivity (first capture) can be satisfied, and the population at time of sampling is not heavily biased to females.