Today there are highly specific synthetic lures now commercially produced, in quantity, that provide reproducible results in monitoring programs. The key benefit of an insect monitoring program is protection of crop quality by timing pesticide sprays more accurately.

As a general rule, traps should be placed in the field one or two weeks before the earliest known emergence date (which varies each year according to temperature and rate of degree day accumulation). Also important is the average number of flights during the season.

Traps are hung on branches of trees, plants, and shrubs in the area to be monitored according to the insect emergency patterns. Pheromone lure placement in the traps varies with trap style. It is vital pheromones must be handled with extreme caution to avoid contamination since they have the affinity to penetrate many materials that come in direct contact. Also, it is important to remember when several species are involved in monitoring the encapsulated lure for one species is not commingled with a lure from the second species aas the pheronone from the first will transfer to the second via hands, contaminating the trpas for the second species, or third, etc.

A new approach to insect pest control is that the insect pheromones can be used as a "mating disruption" (e.g., confusing and frustrating the insect's attempts to copulate) or properly used as a mating sex disruptant. This can be accomplished by saturating an area with a female pheromone - confusing the mailes as to the location of females, thus preventing females from mating. In addition, pheromones are used to suppress insect pest populations using a variety of innovative approaches including mass trapping and various combinations of attractant baits, trap crops and toxicants.