Fruit tree leafroller help

[James J. Kruse]

Hello,

As the lep season quickly approaches/progresses, I would like to renew
my request for fruit tree leafroller (Archips argyrospila) specimens
should any of you come across them during the season. I have glaring
lack of coverage for a large portion of the fruit tree leafroller's range,
particularly in the mountain and central time zones and Canada. If you
are interested in assisting, no matter where you live, I would like to
send you a commercial pheromone to help increase the catch. I only need
about 3-8 specimens, with data, and preserved in ETOH (>90%) or field
pinned.

In addition, if you come across Archips mortuana, A. myricana, or A.
eleagnana (descriptions below) please catch them. I doubt they would come
to the pheromone however. Other Archips species are also welcome should
you come across any.

For those of you who do not know who I am or what I am doing, I am a
graduate student in Felix Sperling's lab at UC Berkeley. We are
conducting research on several populations of Archips argyrospila
(Lep: Tortricidae) throughout the U.S. and hopefully a couple populations
in Canada. The aim of this research is to examine intraspecies genetic
variability, determine if host races or pheromone differentiated
populations of A. argyrospila are divergent enough recognition as species,
and determine relationships among the closely related species in the
complex (A. mortuana, A. myricana, A. eleagnana).

Fruit tree leafroller can be extremely abundant in apple, pear, cherry and
apricot orchards or oak forests in a wide variety of habitats (also
baldcypress in Louisiana). A. mortuana looks exactly like fruit tree
leafroller, except that it is darker. It may also be found in apple
orchards, often together with argyrospila. Both are known to occur
together in New York state.  I am certain it occurs in other localities in
the New England states.

A. myricana and A. eleagnana occur in southern Canada, and are virtually
indistinguishable from A. argyrospila (except that they probably won't
come to the pheromone). Just catch a bunch at lights and leave them to me
to sort out!

Please send an acknowledgement and snail mail address so that I might send
you a pheromone packet. You can pin the pheromone to your UV collecting
sheet or even near your porch light.

Your participation will help increase the geographic scope of this study.
I will gladly send updates on my preliminary findings if requested. Thanks
to those of you who have already sent me material or offered their
assistance!

Cheers!
Jim Kruse
University of California at Berkeley
Dept. of Environ Sci, Policy and Mgmt.
Div. of Insect Biology
201 Wellman Hall
Berkeley, California, 94720-3112
Voice: (510) 642-7410    Fax: (510) 642-7428
http://www.cnr.berkeley.edu/sperlinglab/kruse.html