Comparison of performance of trimedlure and enriched ginger root oil (zingiber officinalis) in attracting males of mediterranean fruit fly (ceratitis capitata)

In Moulouya perimeter, North-east of Morocco, citrus industry is of great economic importance with 22.000 ha of surface area and a production exceeding 300.000 tons per year. The Mediterranean fruit fly (Medfly) (Ceratitis capitata) is one of the pest insects threatening this crop because of the direct yield losses it inflicts and the quarantine restrictions imposed by citrus importing countries. The phytosanitary management of C.capitata is of considerable strategic importance for the farmers of the region. This management is conducted based on the monitoring and detection of Medfly males before the start of pesticides spray. Successful surveillance programme depends on the choice of an adapted attractant. The study was carried out in Moulouya Perimeter in 2018 and 2019 years. The main objective of this work is to compare the performance of two para-pheromones used in monitoring for the capture of Medfly males, namely trimedlure and enriched ginger root oil. The finding showed that both trimedlure and enriched ginger root oil were selective towards Medfly. The trimedlure had a higher attractive performance than enriched ginger root oil. Furthermore, trimedlure kept its attractiveness performance up to eight weeks while the enriched ginger root oil lost its performance from three weeks after capsules opening.