Ethanol and other host-derived volatiles as attractants to beetles that bore into hardwoods

Abstract

Ethanol, methanol, acetone, and acetaldehyde—chemicals identified in the inner bark of living trees—were used to bait vane traps placed in crowns of oak trees in Connecticut. Ethanol-baited traps caught more cerambycid, scolytid, and clerid beetles than unbaited traps. Buprestidae were not attracted to ethanol. Acetaldehyde and acetone were not attractive to any family. A mixture of ethanol, methanol, and acetaldehyde was no more attractive than ethanol alone. The vane traps were very effective at catching Cerambycidae and Scolytidae, but ineffective compared to sticky panels at catching Buprestidae.