Today Ventura County Cooperative Extension Staff Research Associate Maren Mochizuki shares with us procedures used while conducting local spotted wing drosophila research. The procedures for successful research require planning, organization and devoted attention to detail.
About 3 days before each trapping period, we prepare fresh bait -- a solution of yeast, sugar, and water. After letting the bait rest for 24-48 hours (Mark Bolda, Strawberry and Caneberry Advisor in Santa Cruz, San Benito, and Monterey counties speculates the flies are attracted to the fermentation smell), we add it to the traps in the field. The next day, we check the contents of the trap and then dispose of the used bait offsite.
Another monitoring technique we utilize is sweep netting. For this project, we sweep the net back and forth along about 20 linear feet of blueberry shrubs, strawberry plants, or blackberry canes and then the contents are dumped over a container of soapy water to look at any flying insects that were caught.
We have been trapping weekly since the beginning of June in blueberries in Oxnard and Camarillo and added a mixed garden location in Santa Paula in early July.
For more information about this pest, please read previous posts or visit UC ANR’s intergrated pest management website.
Bottle-style trap used in caneberries and trees.
Bucket-style trap used in low-growing
plants such as blueberries and strawberries.