Large-Volume Gravid Traps Enhance Collection of Culex Vectors

Gravid mosquito collections were compared among several large-volume (infusion volume ≥35 liters) gravid trap designs and the small-volume (infusion volume  =  6 liters) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) gravid trap used routinely by vector control districts for vector and pathogen surveillance. The numbers of gravid Culex quinquefasciatus, Cx. tarsalis, and Cx. stigmatosoma collected by large gravid traps were greater than by the CDC gravid trap during nearly all overnight trials. Large-volume gravid traps collected on average 6.6-fold more adult female Culex mosquitoes compared to small-volume CDC gravid traps across 3 seasons during the 3 years of the studies. The differences in gravid mosquito collections between large-versus small-volume gravid traps were greatest during spring, when 8- to 56-fold more Culex individuals were collected using large-volume gravid traps. The proportion of gravid females in collections did not differ appreciably among the more effective trap designs tested. Important determinants of gravid trap performance were infusion container size and type as well as infusion volume, which determined the distance between the suction trap and the infusion surface. Of lesser importance for gravid trap performance were the number of suction traps, method of suction trap mounting, and infusion concentration. Fermentation of infusions between 1 and 4 wk weakly affected total mosquito collections, with Cx. stigmatosoma collections moderately enhanced by comparatively young and organically enriched infusions. A suction trap mounted above 100 liters of organic infusion housed in a 121-liter black plastic container collected the most gravid mosquitoes over the greatest range of experimental conditions, and a 35-liter infusion with side-mounted suction traps was a promising lesser-volume alternative design.