Interception Traps (interception + trap)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Kinds of Interception Traps

  • flight interception trap


  • Selected Abstracts


    Contradictory results from different methods for measuring direction of insect flight

    FRESHWATER BIOLOGY, Issue 10 2004
    Kate H. Macneale
    Summary 1. Stream ecologists have been puzzled by the apparent paradox that invertebrate populations persist in headwater streams despite the high frequency with which individuals drift downstream. To resolve this ,drift paradox', directions and distances of both larval and adult movement must be identified. Using over 50 interception traps in combination with results from several mark,capture experiments using 15N as a label, we tested the assumption that interception traps accurately represent the ultimate direction of adult insect flight. 2. In several streams in the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest, 76% of 15N-labelled stoneflies (Leuctra ferruginea) had flown upstream from where they emerged to where they were captured. In contrast, over 60% of stoneflies were flying downstream when captured, i.e. on the upstream side of an interception trap. 3. The instantaneous direction, as indicated by the side of the interception trap on which they were captured, indicated the ultimate flight direction for fewer than 1/3 of the individuals captured. Thus, such traps did not accurately reflect the ultimate flight patterns of individuals, as indicated by mark,capture data. 4. Conclusions drawn from interception trap counts regarding the direction of movement and the distribution and persistence of populations may need to be re-evaluated. We suggest that better tracking methods, including mass mark,capture studies using stable isotopes, be used to evaluate the potentially complex patterns of adult insect movement and the consequences of that movement for individuals and populations. [source]


    Spatiotemporal changes of beetle communities across a tree diversity gradient

    DIVERSITY AND DISTRIBUTIONS, Issue 4 2009
    Stephanie Sobek
    Abstract Aim, Plant and arthropod diversity are often related, but data on the role of mature tree diversity on canopy insect communities are fragmentary. We compare species richness of canopy beetles across a tree diversity gradient ranging from mono-dominant beech to mixed stands within a deciduous forest, and analyse community composition changes across space and time. Location, Germany's largest exclusively deciduous forest, the Hainich National Park (Thuringia). Methods, We used flight interception traps to assess the beetle fauna of various tree species, and applied additive partitioning to examine spatiotemporal patterns of diversity. Results, Species richness of beetle communities increased across the tree diversity gradient from 99 to 181 species per forest stand. Intra- and interspecific spatial turnover among trees contributed more than temporal turnover among months to the total ,-beetle diversity of the sampled stands. However, due to parallel increases in the number of habitat generalists and the number of species in each feeding guild (herbivores, predators and fungivores), no proportional changes in community composition could be observed. If only beech trees were analysed across the gradient, patterns were similar but temporal (monthly) species turnover was higher compared to spatial turnover among trees and not related to tree diversity. Main conclusions, The changes in species richness and community composition across the gradient can be explained by habitat heterogeneity, which increased with the mix of tree species. We conclude that understanding temporal and spatial species turnover is the key to understanding biodiversity patterns. Mono-dominant beech stands are insufficient to conserve fully the regional species richness of the remaining semi-natural deciduous forest habitats in Central Europe, and analysing beech alone would have resulted in the misleading conclusion that temporal (monthly) turnover contributes more to beetle diversity than spatial turnover among different tree species or tree individuals. [source]


    Contradictory results from different methods for measuring direction of insect flight

    FRESHWATER BIOLOGY, Issue 10 2004
    Kate H. Macneale
    Summary 1. Stream ecologists have been puzzled by the apparent paradox that invertebrate populations persist in headwater streams despite the high frequency with which individuals drift downstream. To resolve this ,drift paradox', directions and distances of both larval and adult movement must be identified. Using over 50 interception traps in combination with results from several mark,capture experiments using 15N as a label, we tested the assumption that interception traps accurately represent the ultimate direction of adult insect flight. 2. In several streams in the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest, 76% of 15N-labelled stoneflies (Leuctra ferruginea) had flown upstream from where they emerged to where they were captured. In contrast, over 60% of stoneflies were flying downstream when captured, i.e. on the upstream side of an interception trap. 3. The instantaneous direction, as indicated by the side of the interception trap on which they were captured, indicated the ultimate flight direction for fewer than 1/3 of the individuals captured. Thus, such traps did not accurately reflect the ultimate flight patterns of individuals, as indicated by mark,capture data. 4. Conclusions drawn from interception trap counts regarding the direction of movement and the distribution and persistence of populations may need to be re-evaluated. We suggest that better tracking methods, including mass mark,capture studies using stable isotopes, be used to evaluate the potentially complex patterns of adult insect movement and the consequences of that movement for individuals and populations. [source]


    Insights into the termite assemblage of a neotropical rainforest from the spatio-temporal distribution of flying alates

    INSECT CONSERVATION AND DIVERSITY, Issue 3 2009
    THOMAS BOURGUIGNON
    Abstract., 1. During the last decade, many studies have focused on the diversity of termite species and their ecological function, but these have been mostly based on transect protocols not designed to sample canopy-dwelling and subterranean species. Additionally, all these studies relied upon collections of foraging parties composed of workers and soldiers in the soil or in pieces of wood. 2. We hypothesised that alate-based protocols could disclose spatial and temporal patterns of termite flights and provide a more balanced picture of assemblages for ecological and biodiversity surveys. 3. Our study took place in the framework of the IBISCA-Panama project, which used numerous trapping methods to give a multifaceted overview of a complex tropical rainforest arthropod community. Two methods, flight interception traps and light traps, were efficient at collecting termite alates. All collected specimens were assigned to morphospecies which were later identified to the genus or species level, when possible. 4. Our results highlighted that: (i) alate trapping represents a powerful complement to ground-based standardised sampling protocols by allowing the documentation of the whole termite assemblage. (ii) Canopy dwellers fly preferentially in the upper strata, whereas no vertical stratification was found for ground dwellers, suggesting that height of flight is dictated by a pressure for long distance dispersal as well as the need to find a suitable site for colony-founding. (iii) Alates from closely related species do not stagger their flight period to avoid hybridisation but rather synchronise their flights according to environmental factors. [source]


    Single host trees in a closed forest canopy matrix: a highly fragmented landscape?

    JOURNAL OF APPLIED ENTOMOLOGY, Issue 9-10 2007
    J. Müller
    Abstract:, Whether trees represent habitat islands and therefore are influenced by similar biogeographic processes as ,real' islands is controversial. For trees in highly fragmented landscapes the impacts of spatial isolation on arthropod communities have already been demonstrated. However, we have almost no evidence that in large forests the arthropod communities on single trees in a closed canopy matrix are influenced by similar processes. In the present study the influence of spatial isolation on the specialized oak crown fauna was analysed in a large broadleaved forest area in northern Bavaria, Germany. The dependence of specialists on the proportion of oaks in the surrounding forest was investigated by using flight interception traps (67 on oak, 19 on beech). As target species, saproxylic and herbivorous Coleoptera and Heteroptera were sampled. The following two hypotheses were tested: (1) The proportion of oak specialists differs for oaks in beech forests and oaks in oak forests. (2) The proportion of oak specialists increases with the proportion of oaks in the surrounding forest. For all species groups, the proportion of oak specialists was higher in oak crowns than in beech crowns. Herbivorous beetles and true bugs showed a higher proportion of specialists in oak forests than on single oaks in beech forests. The proportion of herbivorous oak specialists increased significantly with increasing numbers of adjacent oak trees, while saproxylic Coleoptera showed no relationship to oak density. For herbivorous Coleoptera a threshold of higher proportion occurred where >30% oak was present, and for Heteroptera a first threshold was identified at values >70% and a second at >30%. This indicates that larger habitat patches within a closed forest canopy matrix support larger populations of herbivorous oak specialists. Hence, similar effects of spatial isolation might occur in a closed forest as have already been shown for highly fragmented open landscapes. [source]


    Sampling methods for phlebotomine sandflies

    MEDICAL AND VETERINARY ENTOMOLOGY, Issue 2 2000
    B. Alexander
    Summary A review is presented of methods for sampling phlebotomine sandflies (Diptera: Psychodidae). Among ,500 species of Phlebotominae so far described, mostly in the New World genus Lutzomyia and the Old World genus Phlebotomus, about 10% are known vectors of Leishmania parasites or other pathogens. Despite being small and fragile, sandflies have a wide geographical range with species occupying a considerable diversity of ecotopes and habitats, from deserts to humid forests, so that suitable methods for collecting them are influenced by environmental conditions where they are sought. Because immature phlebotomines occupy obscure terrestrial habitats, it is difficult to find their breeding sites. Therefore, most trapping methods and sampling procedures focus on sandfly adults, whether resting or active. The diurnal resting sites of adult sandflies include tree holes, buttress roots, rock crevices, houses, animal shelters and burrows, from which they may be aspirated directly or trapped after being disturbed. Sandflies can be collected during their periods of activity by interception traps, or by using attractants such as bait animals, CO2 or light. The method of trapping used should: (a) be suited to the habitat and area to be surveyed, (b) take into account the segment of the sandfly population to be sampled (species, sex and reproduction condition) and (c) yield specimens of appropriate condition for the study objectives (e.g. identification of species present, population genetics or vector implication). Methods for preservation and transportation of sandflies to the laboratory also depend on the objectives of a particular study and are described accordingly. [source]


    Seasonality of a Diverse Beetle Assemblage Inhabiting Lowland Tropical Rain Forest in Australia

    BIOTROPICA, Issue 3 2009
    Peter S. Grimbacher
    ABSTRACT One of the least understood aspects of insect diversity in tropical rain forests is the temporal structuring, or seasonality, of communities. We collected 29,986 beetles of 1473 species over a 4-yr period (45 monthly samples), with the aim to document the temporal dynamics of a trophically diverse beetle assemblage from lowland tropical rain forest at Cape Tribulation, Australia. Malaise and flight interception traps were used to sample adult beetles at five locations at both ground and canopy levels. Beetles were caught throughout the year, but individual species were patchy in their temporal distribution, with the 124 more abundant species on average being present only 56 percent of the time. Climatic variables (precipitation, temperature, and solar radiation) were poorly correlated with adult beetle abundance, possibly because: (1) seasonality of total beetle abundance was slight; (2) the peak activity period (September,November) did not correspond to any climatic maxima or minima; or (3) responses were nonlinear owing to the existence of thresholds or developmental time-lags. Our results do not concur with the majority of tropical insect seasonality studies suggesting a wet season peak of insect activity, perhaps because there is no uniform pattern of insect seasonally for the humid tropics. Herbivores showed low seasonality and individual species' peaks were less temporally aggregated compared to nonherbivores. Canopy-caught and larger beetles (> 5 mm) showed greater seasonality and peaked later in the year compared to smaller or ground-caught beetles. Thus seasonality of adult beetles varied according to the traits of feeding ecology, body size, and habitat strata. [source]