Investigations on the response of lepidopteran sex pheromones of temperate fruit pests in Himachal Pradesh, India

Fourteen lepidopterous synthetic sex pheromones were evaluated over 2 seasons (1982 and 1983) for their efficacy in trapping temperate fruit pests. Four insect pests, Archips pomivora Meyrick, A.sp.nr. hemixantha Meyrick, Acleris orphnocycla Meyrick (Tortricidae) and Lymantria concolor Walker (Lymantriidae) responded to the pheromones in varying degrees. OBLR, FTLR and LAW pheromones attracted the largest proportion (41.4, 20.2 and 16.3%, respectively) of A. pomivora , the predominate tortricid infesting apple in Himachal Pradesh. GM pheromone attracted L. concolor , a defoliator of temperate fruits. CM, GFUN and OFM pheromones did not trap Cydia pomonella (L.), Grapholitha funebrana (Treitschke) or G. Molesta (Busck) and therefore complete absence of these pests in Himachal Pradesh is suggested.