Author
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Carlson, David |
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Hogsette, Jerome - Jerry |
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Submitted to: Journal of Economic Entomology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal Publication Acceptance Date: 11/28/2006 Publication Date: 4/1/2007 Citation: Carlson, D.A., Hogsette Jr, J.A. 2007. Flybrella: a device to attract and kill house flies. Journal of Economic Entomology. 100:483-487. Interpretive Summary: The house fly constitutes one of the most serious insect management problems in restaurants, super markets, and large modern superstores and retail outlets where food is sold and prepared. Effective traps for management of flies indoors are limited to pesticide-free ultraviolet light traps and traps based on sticky papers or sticky ribbons that cannot be used around food. In many cases traps are placed so that traps and dead flies are out of public view. There are locations in commercial establishments where traps are needed but for which no unpowered traps are available. Scientists at the Center for Medical, Agricultural, and Veterinary Entomology, USDA, ARS, Gainesville, Florida designed a trap with a long clear tube that holds fly attractant and a small amount of pesticide but has restricted access through small holes. This inexpensive trap hangs on overhead water and power lines where flies rest in commercial kitchens and bakeries, but would be useful in domestic kitchens that resemble the size and shape of test rooms. Flybrella attracts flies with a commercial attractant, kills them in a few seconds with a rapid-acting stomach poison, and conceals dead flies in a colored container at the base of the trap. This is the first modern trap that works well with a pesticide held inside a holder where it cannot be touched and that is safe for mammals. Test results indicate that Flybrella will make a useful tool for fly management programs that will allow for placement of traps in indoor areas where no traps were previously available. Technical Abstract: FLYBRELLA describes a lightweight inexpensive trap that can be hung like an upside-down umbrella in prominent locations where the house flies rest. It consists of a perforated transparent tube that house flies were found to enter readily, containing a strip of rapid-acting sugar-based toxicant. An inverted plastic cone (10 cm diameter) is attached to the backbone directly under the tube or bottle to collect house flies that feed, then fall directly down the tube. The cone collects and conceals the dead flies and may be easily emptied. Paired indoor tests with several attractant materials showed increased proportions of captured flies compared to those captured by the toxicant strip alone. Variants of this design were tested including a design with two concentric perforated baffles, and another with larger diameter tubing. The baffle with its toxicant strip may be removed and/or easily replaced. These devices are inexpensive, attractive in appearance, unobtrusive and may remain in place indefinitely. |
