DIFFERENTIAL RESPONSE OF MALE ORIENTAL FRUIT-FLY (DIPTERA, TEPHRITIDAE) TO COLORED TRAPS BAITED WITH METHYLEUGENOL

The response of male oriental fruit fly, Dacus dorsalis Hendel, to colored plastic bucket traps baited with methyleugenol was determined in a commercial guava, Psidium guajava L., orchard. When traps were placed close together on stakes, white and yellow traps caught the largest number of flies, whereas green, red, and black caught the fewest. When traps were placed in guava trees, no significant difference in fly captures occurred, although white traps caught the most flies and the same general trend in trap efficiency occurred. Results suggest that the attractiveness of traps is due primarily to intensity of reflected light. The potential for improving trap efficiency in D. dorsalis monitoring and control programs is discussed.