ACTIVITY PATTERNS OF ADULT MEXICAN RICE BORERS (LEPIDOPTERA, PYRALIDAE) IN SUGARCANE

Nocturnal collections of Eoreuma loftini (Dyar) adults in sugarcane we re used to evaluate the effects of synthetic pheromone applications on nightly activity patterns. The pheromone treatment differentially inf luenced captures of the sexes; usually, more females were collected fr om treated than untreated plots while the opposite trend was observed for males. More flying than sitting moths were captured in both pherom one treated and untreated plots. Peaks of female activity occurred ear ly in the night (2200-2400 h CDT) while males were most active late in the night (0400-0600 h). Pheromone treatment did not influence nightl y collection patterns of flying or sitting females or sitting males. A lthough a change in the collection pattern of flying males in response to the pheromone was demonstrated, differences were small relative to the overall nightly pattern of collection. These results indicate tha t optimal sampling times for E. loftini adults differ according to mot h sex. This information will be useful in developing and evaluating co ntrol strategies involving mating disruptants, attractants, or adultic ides.