Comparison of colored sticky traps for Stomoxys calcitrans (Diptera: Muscidae) on dairy cattle farms in Saraburi province, Thailand.

A sticky trap is a simple, low-cost method for the field estimation of insect population density. The present study was investigated the attraction of Stomoxys calcitrans using 5 different colors of sticky trap (blue, gray, transparent, white, and yellow). Throughout the sampling period, the sticky traps collected 1,559 S. calcitrans adults, of which 560 (36%) were females and 999 (64%) were males. The mean numbers of S. calcitrans on the 3 dairy cattle farms sampled differed significantly among the different trap colors, with both sexes being preferentially attracted to white or blue sticky traps. However, the white sticky traps were more effective at trapping S. calcitrans than the yellow and transparent sticky traps. Thus, a white-colored fly trap design was recommended for monitoring purposes.