Mating disruption to control the olive moth Prays oleae (Bern) was tested from 1992 to 1996 in olive groves in Greece. The major sex pheromone component (Z)‐7‐tetradecenal was formulated in β‐cyclodextrin (β‐CD) and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) polymers. Pheromone trap catches were reduced by up to 96–100% in the mating‐disruption plots. During the first year of mating disruption a treatment with Bacillus thuringiensis (var. kurstaki) (Bt) was applied to reduce the first generation or larvae. Fruit damage in the mating disruption plots was lower compared with the fruit damage in Bt, insecticide and untreated plots. In high fruiting years, the proportion of fruit damage was lower than in low fruiting years. Mating disruption applied in the same olive grove over several years progressively reduced the olive moth population from year to year.

(E)-11-Hexadecenal and (E)-11-hexadecen-1-yl acetate were found in abdomen tip extracts from females of the jasmine mothPalpita unionalis (Hübn). The identification was based on capillary GC analyses, mass spectrometry, and laboratory and field tests. In laboratory bioassays, both components elicited a low level of upwind flight by males. The two components when tested separately in the field were inactive, but the blend of the two components at a ratio of (3:7) was highly attractive to males. Traps baited with 1 mg of the two-component blend were competitive to traps baited with five virgin females. The addition of Z isomers components reduced male capture.