Design factors that influence the performance of flight intercept traps for the capture of longhorned beetles (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) from the subfamilies Lamiinae and Cerambycinae

Abstract

In North America, cerambycid beetles can have significant ecological and economic effects on forest ecosystems, and the rate of introduction and/or detection of exotic species is increasing. Detection and survey programs rely on semiochemical-baited intercept traps which are often ineffective for large woodborers like cerambycid beetles. This study examined the effects of flight intercept trap design on the capture of cerambycid beetles in the subfamilies Lamiinae and Cerambycinae. These subfamilies are the two largest in the Cerambycidae and they include many of the most damaging cerambycid pests and species on regulatory watch lists in North America. This study demonstrates that intercept trap design, treatment of trap surfaces with a lubricant, and the type of collection cup all influence the capture of beetles from the subfamilies Lamiinae and Cerambycinae. It also demonstrates that the addition of a large lubricant-treated collar to the bottom funnel of a multiple-funnel trap significantly increases the capture of some Lamiinae. The best trap design for both subfamilies was a lubricant treated multiple-funnel [MF] trap equipped with a wet cup and lubricant treated large collar on the bottom funnel. This design captured between 4 and 14 times more Lamiinae and Cerambycinae than commercially-available MF and panel traps. © 2014 Allison et al.