The war against the brown marmorated stink bug just got a new weapon.
Sterling International has developed the Rescue Stink Bug Trap and will have it in stores this summer. It uses a synthetic pheromone or sex lure to attract the insect into the trap.
Stink bugs, an invasive species from Asia discovered first in Allentown, Pa., in the late 1990s, have spread to at least 30 states. These bugs have confounded gardeners and farmers alike by feeding on a variety of vegetables and fruits, including but not limited to tomatoes, apples, beans and ornamental plants. They have also plagued homeowners, finding their way inside as the weather turns cold. They are harmless, but a nuisance in the house.
There are no known natural predators for them the United States, but a species of titmice (a bird) will eat them. The stink bug is also resistant to many pesticides.
Stephanie Cates, formerly of Upper St. Clair, is director of marketing and communications for Sterling International in Spokane, Wash. She says that the trap will attract both the immature (nymph stage) and mature bugs.
"In the nymph stage, they can't fly. The trap is most effective if it's close to the garden canopy so they can jump from a leaf onto the panels of the trap," she said.
It's designed for outdoor use only. Tests have found that the bug doesn't react to the pheromone indoors, although the company is working on ways to trap the bugs once they get inside. The radius of the trap is limited to 20 feet, so it won't lure bugs from all over, Ms. Cates said.
The pheromones are odor-free to humans.
"If people can catch them outdoors and eliminate them before they get inside, that's the best way to go," she said.
When the trap becomes available at independent garden centers in July, it will retail for $19.95 and come with enough pheromones to last two weeks. A replacement pheromone insert lasts seven weeks and costs $9.99.
The trap was tested last fall at the USDA's 800-acre facility in Beltsville, Md.
"We caught lots of adult stink bugs," Ms. Cates said.
Information: http://rescuebugblog.typepad.com/rescue_bugblog/stink-bugs/ .
First Published: February 12, 2011, 10:30 p.m.
