Comparison of Two Fly Traps for the Capture of Horse Flies (Diptera: Tabanidae)

Abstract

A 2-yr study was conducted to examine differences between two commercially available horse fly traps, the Epps® Biting Fly Trap (Farnum Co., Phoenix, AZ) and the Horse Pal® (Newman Enterprises, Omro, WI), placed on three horse farms located in central North Carolina. Traps captured over 8,422 tabanids, representing 4 genera and 19 species. Tabanus quinquevittatus Wiedemann was the most abundant fly collected (2345), followed by the T. lineola F. species complex (2087), T. fulvulus Weidemann (1397) and T. petiolatus Hine (839). Although the Horse Pal captured more flies than the Epps trap, fly capture differences between traps were not significant for the 2000 and 2001 summer seasons (F = 1.39; df = 3, 143; P ≤ 0.249). The Epps trap was most efficacious for early-season (June and July) trapping of T. quinquevittatus and the T. lineola complex in 2000. In contrast, the Horse Pal was more efficacious for these species during the same period in 2001. The Horse Pal was the preferred trap for relative ease in handling.

Behavioral Responses of Tabanidae and Stomoxys calcitrans to Unbaited and Baited Nzi and Horse Pal Traps in Southern Sweden

“…When comparing the Horse Pal trap with and without bait, it was found that the number of tabanids caught was different, but not significantly different, suggesting that this type of trap is as effective in catching tabanids as the Nzi trap, and it would probably have been more or less effective if it had been tested in the vicinity of horses just like in North America (Watson et al, 2007). There were caught several tabanids in the Horse Pal trap with bait, as the tabanids were attracted by their dependence on the amount of odor released even from greater distances (Lehane, 2005).…”

“…In the manufacturer's specifications, it was said, among other things, that this trap does not attract other types of flies, including stable flies. The effectiveness of Horse Pal trap in the catching of tabanids was demonstrating by a two summer seasons study made in North Carolina by Watson et al, (2007).…”

“…Horse Pal trap is considering to be an efficient trap by catching a plenty of horse flies in North America, where tabanids are particularly abundant, especially in forested regions. A comparative study between Epps and Horse Pal traps in central North Carolina pointed out that the second one captured a great number of tabanids and could be moved easily by one person (Watson et al, 2007).…”

A horizontally polarizing liquid trap enhances the tabanid-capturing efficiency of the classic canopy trap

“…These explain why only female tabanids are attracted to the shiny black spherical visual target of canopy traps, and which polarization characteristics attract them in different behavioural contexts. The Epps horsefly trap is composed of shiny black vertical panels with elongated trays filled with water containing soap to reduce surface tension (Watson et al ., 2007). The efficacy of this trap should also be related to the polarization characteristics of reflected light.…”

A comparison of the Nzi, Horse Pal®and Bite-Lite®H-traps and selected baits for the collection of adult Tabanidae in Florida and North Carolina

“…Three trap types were included in our Florida studies. The Horse Pal® (HP) (Newman Enterprises, Omro, WI) described by Watson et al (2007) as a modified Manning trap, is a box-style canopy trap. The HP trap consists of a four-sided pyramid with a square 61-cm long skirted base, a black ball (circumference = 127 cm), and four legs ( Figure 1a).…”