Progress Toward an Attract-and-Kill Device for Asian Citrus Psyllid (Hemiptera: Liviidae) Using Volatile Signatures of Citrus Infected With Huanglongbing as the Attractant

Abstract

Abstract Asian citrus psyllid, Diaphorina citri (Kuwayama), preferentially orient toward citrus hosts infected with the phytopathogenic bacterium, Candidatus liberibacter asiaticus (CLas) the agent of citrus greening (Huanglongbing, HLB), compared to uninfected counterparts. We investigated whether this preference for the odors of infected plants could be useful for the development of an attract-and-kill (AK) device for D. citri. Twenty-nine blends of volatile organic compounds derived from the odor of citrus infected with CLas were tested in laboratory olfactometer tests, and two blends were also assessed under field conditions. A seven component blend of tricosane: geranial: methyl salicylate: geranyl acetone: linalool: phenylacetaldehyde: (E)-β-ocimene in a 0.40: 0.06: 0.08: 0.29: 0.08: 0.06: 0.03 ratio released from a proprietary slow-release matrix attracted twice more D. citri to yellow sticky traps compared with blank control traps. The attractive blend was subsequently co-formulated with spinosad insecticide into a slow-release matrix to create a prototype AK formulation against D. citri. This formulation effectively reduced the population density of D. citri up to 84% as measured with tap counts when deployed at a density of eight 2.5 g dollops per tree as compared with untreated controls in small plot field trials conducted in citrus orchards. Psyllid populations were not statistically affected at a deployment rate of four dollops per tree. Our results indicate that an AK formulation incorporating spinosad and a volatile blend signature of citrus greening into a slow-release matrix may be useful to suppress D. citri populations.