Survey for Gnathotrichussulcatus (Coleoptera: Scolytidae) in a Commercial Sawmill with the Pheromone, Sulcatol

Abstract

Ethanol and sulcatol (6-methyl-5-hepten-2-ol), primary attractant and population aggregation pheromone, respectively, for Gnathotrichussulcatus, were deployed alone or in combination in traps at 10 locations in a commercial sawmill at Chemainus, B.C. The traps were in operation for the last week of the months, April through October 1974, and caught 3098 beetles. Sulcatol was the only significant treatment. Traps baited with it alone or in combination with ethanol caught over 98% of the beetles. There was no significant interaction between ethanol and sulcatol. There was a distinct bimodal seasonal trend in numbers of beetles caught. Locations with the greatest catches of beetles were those where unseasoned lumber was stored, which suggests that beetles either emerged from and (or) oriented to such lumber.