Sexual responses of males of Glossina morsitans morsitans Westwood and G. pallidipes Austen (Diptera: Glossinidae) to traps and targets in the field

Publisher： Cambridge University Press

E-ISSN： 1475-2670|79|2|335-343

ISSN： 0007-4853

Source： Bulletin of Entomological Research, Vol.79, Iss.2, 1989-06, pp. : 335-343

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Abstract

Studies were conducted in Zimbabwe to determine the nature and degree of sexual responses of males of Glossina morsitans Westwood and G. pallidipes Austen around host animals, traps and targets. Males of both species, after being attracted, appeared to accumulate around a stationary bait. This was supported by observations of concentrations of unfed males of G. m. morsitans on bait animals and unfed males of G. pallidipes on the surrounding ground. Nutritional analysis confirmed that traps attract males with a range of hunger states but catch mainly hungry males of both species. Movement of electrified targets significantly increased the catches of both sexes of G. m. morsitans but not of G. pallidipes. Artificial female-mimicking decoys made from black felt sewn onto electrified targets significantly increased the numbers of G. m. morsitans males caught when the targets were stationary and of G. pallidipes males when they were moving. The electrified targets caught a higher proportion of males of both species than traps, most probably as a result of their killing the males accumulating around the target in search of virgin females. The results show that the behaviour of relatively well-fed males attracted to host animals, traps and targets does appear to have a sexual component in both G. m. morsitans and G. pallidipes and that it may be possible to exploit the sexual responses of males to increase capture efficiency further. However, targets may have far greater potential for such manipulation than traps.