Tomato leaf miner, Tuta absoluta is a ravaging pest of tomato in many countries of the world including Tanzania. The pest inflicts substantial damage to tomato crop that causes a huge loss to farmers. This study focused on evaluating potentials of shared volatiles emanated from four hosts of the pest, namely tomato, aubergine, sweet pepper and watermelon in formulating attractant for female T. absoluta. Y-tube olfactometer was used to evaluate attractiveness of leaf volatiles from four hosts and a blend of shared compounds and GC-MS was used to identify volatile constituents of the four hosts. Results indicate that, female T. absoluta were attracted to volatiles of tomato volatiles (χ2 = 4.9, P < 0.05) and repelled by watermelon volatiles (χ2 = 6.4, P < 0.05). We further observed high composition of terpenes in tomatoes (70%) as compared to other hosts, which might have contribute to its observed attraction compared to the other hosts. On the other hand, watermelon was highly constituted by green leaves volatiles (GLVs) which is suggested to account for the observed repellency. Thus, shared compounds that do not contain GLVs significantly attracted female T. absoluta at a dose of 10 μl (χ2 = 8.1, P < 0.05). Our findings have revealed that, compounds shared by hosts attract females T. absoluta. Therefore, results from this study have laid groundwork in the development of attractant for management and monitoring of the pest.

中文翻译：

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雌性番茄潜叶者 Tuta absoluta (Meyrick, 1917) (Lepidoptera:Gelechiidae) 对来自宿主的共享化合物的吸引力

番茄潜叶虫 Tuta absoluta 是包括坦桑尼亚在内的世界上许多国家的番茄破坏性害虫。这种害虫对番茄作物造成重大损害，给农民造成巨大损失。本研究的重点是评估来自四种害虫宿主（即番茄、茄子、甜椒和西瓜）的共享挥发物在配制雌性 T. absoluta 引诱剂方面的潜力。Y 型管嗅觉计用于评估来自四种宿主的叶子挥发物的吸引力，并使用共享化合物和 GC-MS 的混合物来鉴定四种宿主的挥发性成分。结果表明，雌性T. absoluta 被番茄挥发物的挥发物吸引（χ2 = 4.9，P < 0.05），被西瓜挥发物排斥（χ2 = 6.4，P < 0.05）。与其他宿主相比，我们进一步观察到番茄中萜烯的高组成 (70%)，这可能有助于观察到与其他宿主相比的吸引力。另一方面，西瓜由绿叶挥发物 (GLV) 构成，这被认为是观察到的排斥性的原因。因此，不包含 GLV 的共享化合物以 10 μl 的剂量显着吸引雌性 T. absoluta（χ2 = 8.1，P < 0.05）。我们的研究结果表明，宿主共享的化合物会吸引雌性 T. absoluta。因此，这项研究的结果为开发用于管理和监测害虫的引诱剂奠定了基础。西瓜高度由绿叶挥发物 (GLV) 构成，这被认为是观察到的排斥性的原因。因此，不包含 GLV 的共享化合物以 10 μl 的剂量显着吸引雌性 T. absoluta（χ2 = 8.1，P < 0.05）。我们的研究结果表明，宿主共享的化合物会吸引雌性 T. absoluta。因此，这项研究的结果为开发用于管理和监测害虫的引诱剂奠定了基础。西瓜高度由绿叶挥发物 (GLV) 构成，这被认为是观察到的排斥性的原因。因此，不包含 GLV 的共享化合物以 10 μl 的剂量显着吸引雌性 T. absoluta（χ2 = 8.1，P < 0.05）。我们的研究结果表明，宿主共享的化合物会吸引雌性 T. absoluta。因此，这项研究的结果为开发用于管理和监测害虫的引诱剂奠定了基础。