Aspects of the feasibility of employing odour-baited traps for controlling tsetse flies (Diptera: Glossinidae)

Abstract

AbstractCatches of Glossina morsitans morsitans Westw. and G. pallidipes Aust. attracted to an odour-baited trap in riverine woodland in Rhodesia declined by about three-quarters over a 50-day period in the hot dry season. Concurrent catches from refuges suggested that the decline in trap catches was due to a reduction in population densities rather than a decreasing responsiveness of tsetse to the trap. Of G. pallidipes marked and released 250, 1250 and 2250 m from the trap, the percentages recaptured in the trap after 5 days were about 20, 10 and 4, respectively, and after 40 days about 28, 15 and 13. The sustained responsiveness to the trap and efficiency with which marked flies were removed suggested that odour-baited traps at an economical spacing of roughly one per 10 km2 could produce effective control of G. pallidipes.