Use of Phenal, an attractant for Chrysoperla spp., in Italian crops

In trapping tests performed in 2004 at three sites in Italy (olive orchard in Sardinia; apple and maize crops in Udine, northern Italy; and peach orchard in Ciampino, central Italy), traps baited with phenylacetaldehyde (Phenal) caught significantly higher numbers of green lacewings than unbaited traps, demonstrating the attractant activity of this compound. Phenylacetaldehyde-baited traps were attractive for both sexes, but generally more females were captured than males. Ovodeposition tests will be performed in 2005 to evaluate the possibility to manage Chrysoperla spp. populations in different orchards.