Isobutanol and acetic acid are ineffective at attracting yellowjackets (Hymenoptera: Vespidae) in southwestern British Columbia
Abstract
In two field-trapping experiments in British Columbia, Canada, western and northern yellowjackets, Vespula pensylvanica (Saussure) and V. alascensis (Packard) (Hymenoptera: Vespidae), respectively, were caught in traps baited with a heptyl butyrate-based synthetic chemical lure. Very few yellowjackets of either species were caught in traps baited with isobutanol and acetic acid. Catches of western yellowjackets were not increased by the addition of isobutanol and acetic acid to the heptyl butyrate synthetic lure, while catches of northern yellowjackets were decreased in one experiment. These results support an evidence-based reconsideration of the notion that multiple yellowjacket species throughout their geographic ranges are uniformly attracted to isobutanol and acetic acid.
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Copyright (c) 2025 John H. Borden, Tamara L. Trottier
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