Hello all, Recently, I purchased a case of Varied Carpet Beetle pheromone traps to monitor for adult carpet beetle activity inside of a fabric storage facility we have on property. This facility has a history of sporadic carpet beetle activity, so it seemed logical at the time to install the pheromone traps so that chances of early detection could be increased.
Since the installation of the traps, I have wondered about the wisdom of using them in an area that does not have an active infestation of carpet beetles. By their nature, do pheromone traps increase the likelihood of an infestation by drawing carpet beetles into the area? If the radius of trap attraction is, say, ten feet wide around the area of installation, the chances of attracting adult carpet beetles from outside is somewhat remote. If, however, the radius of attraction is much wider than that, there might be a need to rethink the installation of the traps and go with a visual inspection (which would be almost impossible given the volume of the material) or some other means that would be less likely to create problems. Obviously, the detection of adult carpet beetles on a pheromone trap is only an indicator light that would facilitate a thorough inspection of nearby materials for activity since it is the larvae that cause the damage to the fabric material. A post from anyone having experience with these pheromone traps would be a great help! Ryan Jones Integrated Pest Management Specialist [cid:[email protected]] P.O. Box 1776 Williamsburg, VA 23187 (757) 220-7080 [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>
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