Food attractants to increase pheromone-baited traps performance for Scyphophorus acupunctatus (Coleoptera: Dryopthoridae) in mezcal agaves.

The agave weevil, Scyphophorus acupunctatus Gyllenhal (Coleoptera: Dryophthoridae), is the main insect pest on maguey grown for mezcal beverage production in Guerrero, Mexico. We studied the effectiveness of several food attractants in pheromone-baited traps for capturing S. acupunctatus in mezcal maguey plantations. All of the tested food attractants synergized the response of the agave weevil to synthetic aggregation pheromone traps. Adding papalote maguey tissue, ripe banana, or ripe pineapple fruit increased the number of captured weevils in pheromone-baited traps. However, it is easier, cheaper, and more practical to use ripe banana or pineapple fruit as the bait attractant than using the agave tissue.