Entostat powder is impregnated with minute quantities of the female Oriental Fruit Moth sex pheromone. The powder is placed inside a bespoke dispenser which is located throughout the orchard at a frequency of just 10 per acre / 25 per hectare.
Stage 1
Male moths are attracted to the Exosex OFM dispenser, which contains Entostat powder formulated with synthetic female pheromone.
Stage 2
Male moths pick up Entostat powder and female pheromone.
Stage 3
The male's pheromone receptors become overloaded and so the male is unable to locate females.
Stage 4
A male carrying Entostat powder will form a mobile pheromone dispenser, producing "false" pheromone trails, which attract additional males.
Stage 5
Contact between the males ensures that the Entostat powder and the confusion effect is automatically passed on, this process is called Auto-Confusion. The result is a state of sexual confusion amongst the male moth population leading to effective mating disruption.
Stage 6
The Auto-Confusion effect dramatically reduces the chances of the female moth to mate. In the unlikely event that mating does occur, delays beyond the optimum period of fertility of the female moth will reduce the number and viability of the eggs.