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Low-cost floating emergence net and bottle trap: Comparison of two designs

November 1, 2016

Sampling emergent aquatic insects is of interest to many freshwater ecologists. Many quantitative emergence traps require the use of aspiration for collection. However, aspiration is infeasible in studies with large amounts of replication that is often required in large biomonitoring projects. We designed an economic, collapsible pyramid-shaped floating emergence trap with an external collection bottle that avoids the need for aspiration. This design was compared experimentally to a design of similar dimensions that relied on aspiration to ensure comparable results. The pyramid-shaped design captured twice as many total emerging insects. When a preservative was used in bottle collectors, >95% of the emergent abundance was collected in the bottle. When no preservative was used, >81% of the total insects were collected from the bottle. In addition to capturing fewer emergent insects, the traps that required aspiration took significantly longer to sample. Large studies and studies sampling remote locations could benefit from the economical construction, speed of sampling, and capture efficiency.

Publication Year 2016
Title Low-cost floating emergence net and bottle trap: Comparison of two designs
DOI 10.1080/02705060.2016.1217944
Authors Pete Cadmus, Justin Pomeranz, Johanna M. Kraus
Publication Type Article
Publication Subtype Journal Article
Series Title Journal of Freshwater Ecology
Index ID 70175441
Record Source USGS Publications Warehouse
USGS Organization Fort Collins Science Center; Contaminant Biology Program
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