Tobacco Budworms: Nocturnal Activity of Adult Males as Indexed by Attraction to Live Virgin Females in Electric Grid Traps1

Abstract

Knowledge about nocturnal activity has become an important consideration in insect release-recovery programs, and probably will be in control programs which utilize synthetic baits and/or released insects. Graham et al (1964), using BL traps, reported that of 5 periods of 2 hr between 7:30 PM and 5:30 AM, peak collections of tobacco budworms, Heliothis virescens (F.), occurred during the middle nightly period with little difference between the pattern of the sexes. This paper similarly reports nightly activity data on the male tobacco budworm except that the attractant lamp was replaced with an electric grid baited with virgin females. Another paper (Goodenough and Snow 1972) shows the grid trap to be 100-fold more effective than BL traps in collection of tobacco budworms.