Diversity and prevalence of nuisance arthropods detected by sticky traps in apartments in New Jersey

Abstract

Abstract Many nuisance arthropods occur in homes. In this study, nuisance arthropods are defined as any arthropod other than cockroaches and bed bugs. We examined nuisance arthropods found on sticky traps in 1,581 low-income apartments in four cities in New Jersey during 2018–2019 as part of a study for monitoring cockroach infestations. Four sticky traps (three in the kitchen, one in the bathroom) were placed in each apartment for approximately two weeks. Forty two percent of the apartments had nuisance arthropods on sticky traps. The relative abundance of different groups of arthropods were flies—36%, beetles—23%, spiders—14%, ants—10%, booklice—5%, and others—12%. The flies were further grouped into the following subgroups and their relative abundance were fungus gnats—42%, phorid flies—18%, moth flies—17%, fruit flies—10%, midges—8%, and others—5%. Among the beetles, 82% were stored product beetles (including spider beetles). Summer months (May–July) had a much higher frequency of nuisance arthropods occurrence than winter months (November–January). In addition to installing sticky traps, we also conducted interviews with 1,020 residents. Only 13% of the interviewed residents indicated sightings of nuisance arthropods. Resident interviews revealed a much higher relative frequency of sightings for flies (58%), much lower frequency for beetles (4%), and much higher frequency for mosquitoes compared to those captured on sticky traps. We conclude that sticky traps provide much more accurate information on indoor nuisance arthropod abundance and diversity than resident interviews and are a valuable tool for monitoring indoor nuisance arthropods.