I hope the growing season is going well for all fruit producers! My team and several grower collaborators (thank you!) have been monitoring fruit insect pests this season in apple and blueberry, including codling moth, spotted-wing drosophila, and brown marmorated stink bugs. So, for this issue of Facts for Fancy Fruit I thought I would share a quick report on the insect activity we’ve seen so far this season!
Figure 1. Universal bucket trap baited with pheromone lure to monitor codling moth. Photo: E. Y. Long
CODLING MOTH (monitored using universal bucket trap and Scentry codling moth lure, Figure 1, placed in research apple orchard in Tippecanoe Co.)
| Date | Tippecanoe Co. | Total for month |
| Week of May 2 | 0 | 20 |
| Week of May 9 | 1 | |
| Week of May 16 | 14 (biofix!) | |
| Week of May 23 | 2 | |
| Week of May 30 | 3 | |
| Week of June 6 | 2 | 5 |
| Week of June 13 | 2 | |
| Week of June 20 | 1 | |
| Week of June 27 | 0 |
*Date of first sustained capture of moths. Begin tracking cumulative degree days!
Figure 2. Scentry monitoring trap for Spotted-wing drosophila, available from Great Lakes IPM. Photo: E. Y. Long
SPOTTED-WING DROSOPHILA (monitored using commercial Scentry monitoring trap and lure with 25% apple cider vinegar solution, Figure 2, placed in blueberry orchards in three counties in Indiana)
| Date | Warrick Co. | Starke Co. | Tippecanoe Co. |
| Week of May 9 | Traps set | n/a | n/a |
| Week of May 16 | 0 | n/a | n/a |
| Week of May 23 | 0 | Traps set | Traps set |
| Week of May 30 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Week of June 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Week of June 13 | 0 | 0 | 1 female |
| Week of June 20 | 5 males, 6 females* | 2 males, 1 female | 11 males, 7 females |
| Week of June 27 | To be determined | 2 males, 3 females | 5 males, 4 females |
*Females damage berries by cutting through skin to lay eggs.
Figure 3. Trécé Pherocon dual stinkbug lures and clear sticky panel to monitor brown marmorated stink bug. Photo: E. Y. Long
BROWN MARMORATED STINK BUG (monitored using Trécé Pherocon dual stinkbug lures and clear sticky panel, Figure 3, placed in apple orchards in two counties in Indiana)
| Date | Noble Co. | Tippecanoe Co. |
| Week of May 30 | n/a | Traps set |
| Week of June 6 | Traps set | 0 |
| Week of June 13 | 11 | 2 |
| Week of June 20 | 2 | 1 |
| Week of June 27 | 3 | 0 |
| Week of July 5 | To be determined | 1 |
For those who have been monitoring these fruit insects for a while, these trap counts can provide some insight on activity in counties near or around you! If you do not have access to monitoring traps or are not comfortable using traps or identifying these insect pests, I hope these trap counts will be helpful to you in seeing how trap captures have changed as we progress into the summer. As a word of encouragement, anyone can learn how to set and use these traps, and they can help you better time your pest management strategies by more easily detecting the presence and activity of these important fruit pests in your orchards. As we move forward this summer, you can visit the Long Lab website for updates on trap activity as we have it: https://extension.entm.purdue.edu/longlab/extension/#reports.
As always, if you have questions about fruit insect pest identification or how to place and use monitoring traps, reach out to your local extension educator or specialist so we can help! I also invite your requests for more information on fruit insects that are important to you!