Necrobia rufipes (De Geer) infestation in pet food packaging and setup of a monitoring trap

Savoldelli, S., Jucker, C., Peri, E., Arif, M.A.,Guarino, S.

Savoldelli, S., et al. Necrobia rufipes (De Geer) infestation in pet food packaging and setup of a monitoring trap. Insects 2020; 11(9): 623. doi:10.3390/insects11090623

The adults’ and larvae’s ability of Necrobia rufipes (Coleoptera: Cleridae) to enter into pet food packaging was evaluated and behavioral bioassays were carried out to set up of a monitoring trap. Two adhesive surfaces were tested to evaluate their ability in avoiding insects’ escape; methyl cyclopentenolone, squalene and stearic acid were evaluated as candidate food attractants. The results evidenced that N. rufipes enter in packaging through the air vent valves, suggesting that a way to prevent insect infestation would be to modify packaging. Tests showed that the glues have strong differences in the ability to retain the caught insects, with mouse glue (MG) more effective than cockroach glue (CG). The behavioral bioassays indicated that methyl cyclopentenolone (MCP) and squalene (SQ) are able to attract N. rufipes adults in olfactometer. Finally, the dual-choice arena bioassays showed that a mixture of pet food (PT) and methyl cyclopentenolone elicited the strongest attraction in N. rufipes adults.