Thank you for that wonderfully thorough answer, Pat! Saving that for future reference!
Best, Angelica Isa On Thu, Jun 26, 2025, 09:30 Patrick Kelley <[email protected]> wrote: > Hi Florence, > > Pheromones are so intriguing in how insects use them to communicate. Over > a career of working closely with them I have seen many examples of > attraction other than the target species. First of all, insect pheromones > can be a complicated blend of several molecules to attract the pest insects > we want to monitor. With this blend of different chemical molecules, we > sometimes see closely related species reacting to the blend and being drawn > near to it. As an example, the blended pheromone for webbing clothes moth, > *Tineola > bisselliella* can draw in case-making clothes moths, *Tinea pellionella* > and brown-dotted clothes moths, *Niditinea fuscella* (depending on the > custom blend). Besides these, I have also seen a slight attraction to this > same pheromone from some related Monopsis moths such as the bird nest moth, > *Monopsis > crocicapitella* and the skunkback moth, *Monopsis dorsistregella*. All of > these moths are related in that they are in the family Tineidae. Even more > intriguing is the fact that there is a type of clearwing moth in the family > Sesiidae that is attracted to this pheromone. This particular moth has > evolved into Batesian mimicry where a harmless species has evolved into > imitating the warning signals of a harmful species (wasp). I learned this > at one of my son's soccer matches when these wasp-looking moths started > flying all around me since I worked with the pheromone. I was left all > alone in the stands trying to identify the moth since all of the other > parents around me were running away from what they thought were a swarm of > wasps. They all thought that I was either brave or an idiot when I grabbed > one to inspect it closer 😄. > > The same is true for some of the beetles as well. We see cross attraction > to several of the dermestid beetles in the genus Trogoderma such as the > warehouse beetle, *Trogoderma variabile*, Khapra beetle, *Trogoderma > granarium* and the cabinet beetle, *Trogoderma glabrum*. > > Even though there is cross-attraction between species, the reason these > species aren't inter-breeding is because as the males approach the female > who is producing the pheromone, there needs to be many other cues presented > before they actually mate. These could include a male-produced pheromone > being presented, wing beating vibrations produced by the male or even a > mating-ritual dance before the female allows mating. > > From a monitoring standpoint of a pheromone in a sticky trap within your > museum, we have not seen evidence of repellency. You can place a carpet > beetle pheromone and a clothes moth pheromone into the same trap and > attract both without repelling either. If this pheromone is on what would > otherwise be considered a blunder trap (a trap on the ground along a wall), > you will still capture any and all arthropods in that environment that > happen to be passing through. There should be no risk of not knowing the > biodiversity of that environment due to the pheromone lure in the trap. > > This may have been a long-winded response to your question, but I hope > that it helps. > > Best, > > Pat > > Patrick Kelley, BCE (Board Certified Entomologist) > Kelley Entomological Services, LLC > 1204 Ridge Road, Carmel, IN 46033 USA > <https://www.google.com/maps/search/1204+Ridge+Road,+Carmel,+IN+46033+USA?entry=gmail&source=g> > Phone: 317-902-3104 > email:[email protected] > > > On Wed, Jun 25, 2025 at 3:12 PM 'Florence Fleury - Artena Heritage > Preservation GmbH' via MuseumPests <[email protected]> wrote: > >> Hello, >> >> I have a question regarding pheromone traps: >> These are designed to attract a specific insect species (for example, >> clothes moths or carpet beetles). But is it possible for a pheromone trap >> targeting one species to also attract other insect species — or, on the >> contrary, to have a repellent effect on them? >> In other words, could a pheromone trap specifically designed for one >> species distort monitoring results by discouraging or failing to attract >> other insects that are actually present in a collection ? >> This would mean that targeted trapping doesn't necessarily provide a >> representative overview of the actual insect biodiversity in a space. >> >> Thank you in advance for any insights you can provide! >> >> Florence Fleury >> >> >> *[image: signatureImage] * >> *Artena Heritage Preservation GmbH* >> >> Zentweg 17b / CH – 3006 Bern >> <https://www.google.com/maps/search/Zentweg+17b+%2F+CH+%E2%80%93+3006+Bern?entry=gmail&source=g> >> >> +41 (0) 31 533 47 19 >> [email protected] >> artena.swiss >> UID: CHE – 158.652.924 >> >> >> *Florence Fleury * >> Dipl. Konservatorin/Restauratorin FH >> SKR-Mitglied >> +41 (0) 79 764 26 61 >> [email protected] >> [image: signatureImage] >> >> -- >> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >> "MuseumPests" group. >> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an >> email to [email protected]. >> To view this discussion visit >> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/pestlist/GVAP278MB0230CEF95BC45CAD8048D11DA57BA%40GVAP278MB0230.CHEP278.PROD.OUTLOOK.COM >> <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/pestlist/GVAP278MB0230CEF95BC45CAD8048D11DA57BA%40GVAP278MB0230.CHEP278.PROD.OUTLOOK.COM?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> >> . >> > > > -- > Patrick Kelley, BCE (Board Certified Entomologist) > Kelley Entomological Services, LLC > 1204 Ridge Road, Carmel, IN 46033 USA > <https://www.google.com/maps/search/1204+Ridge+Road,+Carmel,+IN+46033+USA?entry=gmail&source=g> > Phone: 317-902-3104 > email:[email protected] > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "MuseumPests" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > To view this discussion visit > https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/pestlist/CAOT71Ua16D1eihNp7%2BiO-CzufkYx-Cu-4_bVfhEmU9DKo5DjCw%40mail.gmail.com > <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/pestlist/CAOT71Ua16D1eihNp7%2BiO-CzufkYx-Cu-4_bVfhEmU9DKo5DjCw%40mail.gmail.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> > . > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "MuseumPests" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/pestlist/CAAJvYjWPgTsEG%2BWsAw5x_reYszFjTC7bEf_kApCCEEiPGxNsKg%40mail.gmail.com.
