Dispersal of Vegetable Leafminer onto a Transplant Production Range

Abstract

Experiments were conducted on a commercial vegetable and ornamental transplant range in Sun City, Florida, USA during the 1977 fall and winter to determine attraction of various trap colors and to monitor leafminer dispersal into the range. Significantly more adult flies were captured on yellow traps than on yellow-green, orange, green and blue. Use of a protective transparent plastic bag on the yellow poster board traps had no significant effect on the number of adult flies trapped. Significantly more flies were trapped on cards located on the periphery of the range nearest the prevailing wind and within 100 ft of commercial tomato farms. Fly movement onto the transplant production range and infestation within production houses reflected both proximity of source and prevailing wind direction.