Kairomone Effect of Extracts from Coffea canephora over Hypothenemus hampei (Coleoptera: Scolytidae)

Abstract

Extracts with different solvents obtained from various parts of the coffee plant Coffea canephora variety Robusta Pierre ex Froehner were tested with traps in a coffee plantation and under laboratory conditions to measure the kairomone activity on the coffee borer Hypothenemus hampei Ferrari. The largest counts of female insects were obtained from methylene chloride extracts of ripened coffee berries. By gas chromatography it was possible to identify caffeine as one of the main compounds in the extracts. The possibility of managing this coffee pest by integrated control methods to diminish the use of insecticides are discussed and proposed.