Flight behaviour of tsetse flies in thick bush (Glossina pallidipes (Diptera: Glossinidae))

Abstract

AbstractAn odour-baited electric net placed in thick bush caught more Glossina pallidipes Austen when sited at ground level (0.2–1.2 m) than when sited in the top of the bush (1.4–2.4 m) or just above it (2.6–3.6 m). However, a similar net running concurrently 4 m away in a game trail through the bush caught far more flies. When electric nets were placed in the centre of two adjacent game trails in this bush and then one of the trails was barricaded with branches from nearby bushes, the catch declined in that trail and increased proportionately in the other. It is inferred that tsetse flies navigate up host odour plumes by finding gaps in thick vegetation rather than by flying over the top or through it, and that game trails are important forms of such gaps. The implications for siting traps and targets are noted.