Trapping to Achieve Pest Control Directly

Abstract

In certain cases, mass trapping alone can reduce pest populations to tolerable levels. The time required for doing so increases with pest density. Thus, this pest management tactic may work satisfactorily at low pest densities but fail at high pest densities. Computer simulations reveal that the impact of trapping on pest damage is exceedingly local for random walkers. Control is achieved only when the traps are deployed in an array that: (i) rapidly clears pests from a given area, and (ii) holds that area from recolonization. Thus, control by mass trapping shares common attributes with military actions where “clear-and-hold” happens to be the dominant counter-insurgency tactic. A regular grid of traps is an effective deployment pattern. Computer simulations suggest that the optimal spacing for such traps is ca. 1.5 times the reach of the trap’s plume. Literature examples of successful mass trapping of insects and small vertebrates are highlighted. All require appreciable labor. If mass trapping is to be widely adopted in modern agriculture, the traps may need to be miniaturized to reduce costs and their deployment automated.