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- Contribution to the study of the beneficial fauna of olive orchards in Porto Martins, Terceira Island, AzoresPublication . Moules, Cristina Alexandra Rocha; Tarantino, Elisa; Lopes, David João Horta; Borges, Paulo A. V.The olive tree culture in Terceira Island occupies a strip in Porto Martins area whose fruit is very sought, mainly by tourists and restaurants. The olive tree is very affected by pests, such as the olive fly, which causes high losses and a drastic loss of production. Therefore, large quantities of pesticides are applied whose applications have a great impact, in particular, on beneficial organisms. In this work, the beneficial fauna present in olive groves was identified through the technique of beatings. The impact of the application of pesticides on these beneficial insects present in olive trees with different levels of treatments was also evaluated. For this, orchards with intensive applications, with less intensive applications and one organic orchard were selected to studied and monitoring. It was verified that in the olive groves with intensive and semi-intensive pesticide applications the abundance of beneficial insects was unbalanced, with a low abundance of predatory insects and still high population densities of the olive cottonweed pest. The results obtained point to the fact that chemical treatments do not destroy the target pests and worst contribute to a reduction in auxiliary organisms. In the organic orchard was observed the highest abundance of predatory insects and the lowest abundance of herbivorous insects. These results showed that this type of orchard is in a natural balance and that this is the way to follow in preserving the presence of beneficial insects in the olive parcels because these are very important to keep low pest populations and permit its better control. The conclusions of this study point to the fact that producers can further increase their yield by taking the biological option in their daily practices that will have a lower impact on the beneficial fauna present in the olive groves. At the same time will also permit to preserve the environment and the health of the applicators, producers and of the consumer by obtaining a product without any pesticide residues.
- The Fruit Fly Protect project and its actions regarding the evaluation of different traps and attractants for Ceratitis capitata Wied. in AzoresPublication . Lopes, David João Horta; Costa, V.; Tarantino, ElisaThe Mediterranean fruit fly (Ceratis capitata Wiedemann) (Diptera: Tephritidae) is one of the most important pests for fruit and vegetable production because of its ability to damage fruits and adapt to new environments. This study aimed to compare different traps, namely Cera Trap® (Bioiberica) filled with food attractant and Tephri trap baited with Econex Trypack® for C. capitata monitoring. C. capitata adults were collected during three years (2018–2020) in citrus orchards on three different islands of the Azorean archipelago: Terceira, S. Miguel and S. Jorge. The results show only a statistical difference in 2020 for São Miguel Island in Tephri Trap. Cera Trap showed good results in terms of capture when population densities are high and it is, therefore, a good tool to control this pest but at low C. capitata densities, Tephri trap with Trypack represents a good control device.
- First finding of Sophonia orientalis (Matsumura) in the AzoresPublication . Tarantino, Elisa; Ros-Prieto, Alejandra; Lopes, David João Horta; Borges, Paulo A. V.Sophonia orientalis (Matsumura) (Hemiptera; Cicadellidae) is native to South-East Asia and is a highly polyphagous pest, considered an invasive pest, that affects crops as well as endemic plants. This paper presents the first report of S. orientalis in the Azores (Portugal). The first individuals were found in 2018 in the botanic garden on Terceira Island and later in 2020 in banana orchards. In 2020, S. orientalis was found in Pico Island in mixed forests.
- Efficacy of two traps and three different pheromone-based attractants to control the banana weevil adults Cosmopolites sordidus (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) in banana orchards on Terceira Island, Azores.Publication . Lopes, David João Horta; Tarantino, Elisa; Moules, C.ABSTRACT: The banana borer weevil, Cosmopolites sordidus (German) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), is considered an important pest of bananas. It is extremely specific to Musaceae (Musaceae: Musa species). The efficacy of the different combination of traps and attractants on the banana weevil is important to been investigated to identify the best combination to use in banana orchards on Terceira Island (Azores). For that purpose, an essay was conducted during two years (2021 and 2022) to determine the efficiency of two traps (Cosmotrack and Stopweevil) and three attractants containing sordidin pheromone (Cosmogel NovAgrica, CosmoPlus Scyll’Agro and EcoSordidina 90K Ecobertura) to monitor C. sordidus populations in two banana orchards. The trap contents were collected every 15 days in 2021 for all the year (January to December). In 2022 the same two traps (Cosmotrack and Stopweevil) and only two different attractants (Cosmogel NovAgrica and CosmoPlus Scyll’Agro) were tested for 5 months (from January to May). The results from both essays suggest that Cosmotrack with Cosmoplus is the more suitable best combination trap and attractant for the control of C. sordidus. We also found significant differences in the banana weevil adult captures between the two traps and the three attractants considered in two orchards. Significant difference was found between Cosmotrack with Cosmoplus and Cosmotrack with Cosmogel, and when between Cosmotrack with Cosmoplus regarding all the other trap and attractant combinations tested.