Dr Shahid Majeed1, Dr. Muhammad Sufian1, Dr. Imran ul Haq1, Dr. Muhammad Arshad1, Dr. Muhammad Dildar Gogi1, Mr. Muhammad Shahid Zafar1

1Department of Entomology, University of Agriculture Faisalabad, Faisalabad, Pakistan

Biography:

Dr. Shahid Majeed is an Associate Professor in the Department of Entomology at the University of Agriculture, Faisalabad (UAF), Pakistan. He has ~10 years of teaching and research experience. He secured a PhD from the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU), Sweden. He has worked in a number of international research laboratories as a visiting scientist. His research mainly spans the fields of insect chemical ecology, vector-borne diseases, climate change to insects, insect behaviour (laboratory and field), insect neuroscience, and integrated vector management. He has presented his research at several international conferences and published ~15 peer-reviewed research publications in scientific journals. He is leading mainly two research grants as Lead Scientist and developed chemical ecology tactics for the management of mosquitoes, tephritid fruit flies and locusts in Pakistan. He has mentored two PhD and ~60 M.Sc. (Hons.)/ M.Phil students.

Abstract:

Bactrocera species are a significant agricultural pest of various fruits and cucurbit crops. The geographical distribution of Bactrocera is found in tropical and subtropical regions around the globe. It prefers to live in warm, and humid environments. Meanwhile, the management’s over-reliance on chemical control methods can lead to the evolution of resistance, reducing the efficacy of pesticides and complicating pest management efforts. The current study was based on understanding the role of pheromones in Bactrocera species. The following pheromone components: zingerone (ZR), raspberry ketone (RK), and cuelure (CL), have been used at different concentrations 10000, 1000, 100, 10, 1, 0.1 µg /ml for B. cucurbitae. Meanwhile, 2-allyl-4,5-dimethoxyphenol (DMP), and Z-coniferyl alcohol (Z-CF) were used for B. zonata at 20, and 2.5 µg /ml. The observations were made by employing a Y-tube olfactometer. The results revealed that females of B. cucurbitae showed significant attraction towards pheromones at low concentrations, however, males of B. cucurbitae showed attraction towards pheromones at higher concentrations. The female showed significant response time at 0.1 µg /ml, 1 µg /ml and 1 µg /ml, while, the male showed significant response time at 100 µg /ml, 10000 µg /ml, and 100 µg /ml, against ZR, RK, and CL, respectively. Additionally, males of B. zonata showed significant attraction towards DMP and Z-CF compared to females at 10 µg /ml. Collectively, the results may provide significant insight into existing monitoring and developing eco-friendly strategies for managing Bactrocera spp.