Resumen
- The aim of this work was to determine if the attraction of males to calling females is affected by the presence of potato plants and if the time used to find females is different when females are alone and when they are together with potato plant. In addition, the potato plant attraction to males was also measured using wind tunnel bioassays. Two days old adults of Tecia solanivora (Povolny) were tested. One male and five females per glass open ended tubes were collected and potato plants used in the bioassays belonged to the species Solanum tuberosum andigenum. males were tested once, during females calling period and one at a time. Treatments were: 1) A group of five open ended tubes with five calling females each, 2) One potato plant eight weeks old and 3)Both, potato plant and calling females. Twenty five males were tested per treatment, during two minutes and the time lasting per each behavior (Activation, take off, half tunnel and landing) was recorded. Results shows that of an 84% of activated males only the 56% reached the odor source and landed on the calling females. On the ther side, when males were exposed to calling females plus the the potato plant a 24% of males reached the calling females and in the case of males exposed to potato plant, results show that from the 60% of activated males only 12% reached the plant during the time of assays suggesting that calling females activates searching behavior of Tecia solanivora males in a higher rate than with plant volatiles.