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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Gainesville, Florida » Center for Medical, Agricultural and Veterinary Entomology » Mosquito and Fly Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #333149
Research Project: Biting Arthropod Surveillance and Control

Location: Mosquito and Fly Research

Title: Reduced performance of a PVC-coated Biogents Sentinel prototype in comparison to the original Biogents Sentinel for monitoring the Asian tiger mosquito, Aedes albopictus, in temperate North America

Author
item UNLU, ISIK - Rutgers University
item FARAJI, ARY - Salt Lake City Mosquito Abatement District
item MORGANTI, MICHAEL - East Baton Rouge Parish Mosquito Abatement And Rodent Control
item VAETH, RANDY - East Baton Rouge Parish Mosquito Abatement And Rodent Control
item AKARATOVIC, KAREN - City Of Suffolk Mosquito Control
item KISER, JAY - City Of Suffolk Mosquito Control
item ABADAM, CHARLES - City Of Suffolk Mosquito Control
item Kline, Daniel - Dan

Submitted to: PLOS ONE
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/13/2017
Publication Date: 3/20/2017
Citation: Unlu, I., Faraji, A., Morganti, M., Vaeth, R., Akaratovic, K., Kiser, J., Abadam, C., Kline, D.L. 2017. Reduced performance of a PVC-coated Biogents Sentinel prototype in comparison to the original Biogents Sentinel for monitoring the Asian tiger mosquito, Aedes albopictus, in temperate North America. PLoS One. 12(3):e0172963. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0172963.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0172963

Interpretive Summary: The Asian Tiger Mosquito (Aedes albopictus) is a major nuisance pest and also a public health concern because it does transmit some arboviruses including the Zika virus. Thereforee, it is essential that agencies responsible for public health have the ability to monitor adult populations of this species. Currently, BioGents traps are the most effective monitoring tool. However, the original model (BGS1) had some engineering deficiencies (fan and wiring). This study describes a new prototype (BGS2P) with an improved design and the field efficacy studies conducted to compare the BGS1 and BGS2P. This study was a collaborative effort between mosquito abatement districts in 3 states (New Jersey, Louisiana and Virginia) and the USDA-ARS Center for Medical, Veterinary and Agricultural Research (CMAVE), Gainesville, Florida. Results indicate that despite improvements in the construction and durability of the prototype trap, the original model had better efficacy.

Technical Abstract: Aedes albopictus is a major nuisance pest and also a public health concern because of the role it plays in the transmission of arboviruses. There is a continuing demand for effective surveillance tools for this species. The first generation of Biogents Sentinel (BGS1) traps have proven to be an effective tool for surveillance of Ae. albopictus throughout its range, however, some defects in construction led to the eventual development of the next generation. We compared the performance of the new generation prototype trap (BGS2P) to the original. Studies were conducted in suburban and urban areas in Florida, Louisiana, New Jersey, and Virginia, USA. BGS1 traps collected significantly more Ae. albopictus when compared to the BGS2P with or without CO2 in all locations (P<0.05). When a white cloth was wrapped around the BGS2P traps, efficiency did not change in Louisiana and New Jersey; however, numbers of adult Ae. albopictus collected from the BGS2P and the BGS1 were significantly different based on lure type (P< 0.0001). The BGS1 also collected significantly higher adult numbers (P < 0.0001) in Virginia. Results from Florida showed that BGS1 with the BG lure and CO2 collected significantly higher adult numbers compared to BGS2P with a three component cartridge lure and CO2 (P< 0.0001). Overall, our results indicate that despite improvements in construction and durability of the BGS2P, this newer trap type did not increase the capture rates of Ae. albopictus in North America.