Insect traps containing “sex pheromones” for 19 pests have been developed by the Taiwan Agricultural Chemicals and Toxic Substances Research Institute, part of the Council of Agriculture, after it experimented on the “fragrance” emitted by insects during reproduction.
These pheromone traps are applicable to crops spanning groves, sweet potatoes, vegetables, corns, sugarcanes, rice and stock medicine herbs, offering an alternative to chemical pesticides.
The institute said the sex pheromones cause no side effects, but effectively reduce the number of pests.
It encourages farmers to combine their use with other pesticides for the best results, both to establish a pest prevention system and reduce the damage that conventional pesticides have on the environment.
Citing the carambola fruit borer (Eucosma notanthes Meyrick) as an example, Hung Chiao-chen (洪巧珍), a researcher at the institute, said that if the bug traps capture less than 10 of these borers a week, it means no pesticide is needed for starfruit groves.
A sweet potato garden employed four pheromone traps to lure and exterminate sweet potato weevils (Cylas formicarius) since the sowing period and posted a success rate of between 55 and 60 percent.
Cauliflower fields tested have each saved up to NT$5,000 with the help of 20 pheromone traps set up to kill diamondback moths.
Hung said sex pheromones, which are emitted during reproduction, have the same alluring effect on insects as perfume on humans.
They are species-specific and effective in decreasing the density of any one pest, while being non-lethal to other organisms, she said.
Each trap contains 0.1mg to 5mg of sex pheromones, which can last anywhere between one and six months. These pheromones evaporate easily, enticing pests through scents and leaving no residue, she said, adding that they are also a useful indicator of pest population sizes.
The 19 sex pheromone traps developed by the institute include ones targeting fruit-eating pests, such as the litchi fruit borer (Conopomorpha sinensis), the carambola fruit borer, the macadamia nut borer (Cryptophlebia ombrodelta), the peach moth (Grapholita molista), the guava mealybug (Planococcus minor), the citrus mealybug (Planococcus citri), the casuarina moth (Lymantria xylina) and the cocoa Tussock Moth (Orgyia Postica).
Others aimed at grain-and-special-crops-eating pests, including the Asian corn borer (Ostrinia furnacalis), the sweet potato weevil, the Asiatic rice borer (Chilo suppressalis), the tea tortrix (Homona coffearia), the almond moth (Cadra cautella) and the Indian meal moth (Plodia interpunctella).
Four dry pheromone traps have also been made available to farmers by the institute. They are made to counter sweet potato weevils, carambola fruit borers, casuarina moths and lepidopterans in general, the institute said.
The institute said that farmers who are interested in these pheromone insect traps can contact the institute by calling 04 2330-2101, extension 829.
A tropical depression east of the Philippines became a tropical storm early yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, less than a week after a typhoon barreled across the nation. The agency issued an advisory at 3:30am stating that the 22nd tropical storm, named Yinxing, of the Pacific typhoon season formed at 2am. As of 8am, the storm was 1,730km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, with a 100km radius. It was moving west-northwest at 32kph, with maximum sustained winds of 83kph and gusts of up to 108kph. Based on its current path, the storm is not expected to hit Taiwan, CWA
Residents have called on the Taipei City Government to reconsider its plan to demolish a four-decades-old pedestrian overpass near Daan Forest Park. The 42-year-old concrete and steel structure that serves as an elevated walkway over the intersection of Heping and Xinsheng roads is to be closed on Tuesday in preparation for demolition slated for completion by the end of the month. However, in recent days some local residents have been protesting the planned destruction of the intersection overpass that is rendered more poetically as “sky bridge” in Chinese. “This bridge carries the community’s collective memory,” said a man surnamed Chuang
A tropical depression east of the Philippines became a tropical storm earlier today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The 22nd tropical storm, named Yinxing, in this year's Pacific typhoon season formed at 2am, the CWA said. As of 8am, the storm was 1,730km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻) with a 100km radius, it said. It was moving west-northwest at 32kph, with maximum sustained winds of 83kph and gusts of up to 108kph. Based on its current path, the storm is not expected to hit Taiwan, CWA meteorologist Huang En-hung (黃恩宏) said. However, a more accurate forecast would be made on Wednesday, when Yinxing is
NEW DESTINATIONS: Marketing campaigns to attract foreign travelers have to change from the usual promotions about Alishan and Taroko Gorge, the transport minister said The number of international tourists visiting Taiwan is estimated to top 8 million by the end of this year, Minister of Transportation and Communications Chen Shi-kai (陳世凱) said yesterday, adding that the ministry has not changed its goal of attracting 10 million foreign travelers this year. Chen made the remarks at a meeting of the legislature’s Transportation Committee to brief lawmakers about the ministry’s plan to boost foreign visitor arrivals. Last month, Chen told the committee that the nation might attract only 7.5 million tourists from overseas this year and that when the ministry sets next year’s goal, it would not include