Public Perception of a Trap to Locally Reduce Yellow Fly (Diptera: Tabanidae) Nuisance in Residential Areas of Northeastern Florida

Abstract

A mail survey was conducted to measure perception of seasonal yellow fly (Diptera: Tabanidae) nuisance by residents of the East Flagler Mosquito Control District (Flagler County, FL) before and after using adhesive-coated black beach balls as traps to capture these outdoor biting fly pests. A total of 72 (36%) completed questionnaires were received from 200 initially mailed. The majority of survey respondents (70%) reported that annoyance (nuisance) from yellow flies had decreased after using this trap. Relative reduction of nuisance did not appear to have been significantly (P > 0.05) influenced by number of trapped flies observed on traps. Fly nuisance was not related to length of residence in the county or number of years a person had used the beach ball traps. Most respondents (66.0%) reported that they used one trap per residence with the majority of traps (48.0%) placed in the backyard. No significant relationship existed between initial nuisance ranking and number of traps used. Sixty-six percent of survey respondents reported that the trap was very easy to use, while 98.6% stated this method of control was worth the effort expended.