Detection and monitoring of Epicometis hirta Poda and Tropinota squalida Scop. with the same trap

There was no significant difference in the mean catch of Tropinota squalida Scop. (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae, Cetoniinae) in white or blue traps with the floral bait consisting of ( E )-cinnamyl alcohol plus ( E )-anethol (which is the previously optimized floral bait for the closely related scarab Epicometis hirta Poda). Therefore we concluded that both scarabs can be trapped efficiently with the same trap, which could be advantageous from the practical point of view. In seasonal monitoring trials conducted at 8 sites in Europe using blue traps with the floral bait, adult beetles of both T. squalida and E. hirta were successfully detected and their flight pattern was clearly established. At the site in Sicily (Italy) only T. squalida was present, while in Bulgaria, Croatia and Hungary only E. hirta was captured. At a site near Rome (Italy) both scarabs were caught