This is a simple yet very effective trap for flies, mosquito's, wasps, and even fruit flies. The key to the trap is in the bait. For flies, any fresh rotting meat will work. Raw hamburger or similar works just fine. The more disgusting the smell, the greater the fly response. For wasps, and fruit flies, a piece of banana or a sugar solution usually works. The banana gives off ethyl acetate gas odor and that is attractive to several species of insects. The recipe for mosquito attractant follows the next photo and requires some explanation. In this trap, I used a 2 liter plastic bottle, but smaller will also work as well. Begin by placing a straight edge along the bottle as shown and mark just behind where the curved top starts. And then cut the top off as illustrated:
I painted the funnel part black to show how it is inserted. (The white disk in the lead photo is 1/8 inch foam board that is perforated to catch fruit flies for examination). If the funnel is too loose, just add some tape to secure. Put the selected bait in the bottom, add the funnel, and catch the enemy! The recipe for mosquito's is more controversial. We do know that they are attracted to carbon dioxide from skin and breath. But, it is a bit more complicated than that. But this recipe does generate CO2 and worth trying: Mix 200 ml of warm water with 1/3 cup of sugar. Add 1 package of dry yeast that is used to make bread, available at any market. The fermentation will slowly generate CO2 and will do so for about two weeks. I have one going now and will report as results come in. When the trap is full you can cover the top and place in the refrigerator to kill the insects. Alternatively, a cotton ball can be saturated with ammonia and dropped in the trap while covering the top. I have used this approach for flies and it has been very successful.
Here are some additional thoughts and speculation about mosquito's: It is only the female that bites so that she can propagate the species. Researches have found that when possible, they will bite the feet over any other part of the body. So, in some other countries they have used dirty socks with some success as bait. My speculation is that there is a concentration of octenol, another favorite attractant in the socks. Good hunting...
Here are some additional thoughts and speculation about mosquito's: It is only the female that bites so that she can propagate the species. Researches have found that when possible, they will bite the feet over any other part of the body. So, in some other countries they have used dirty socks with some success as bait. My speculation is that there is a concentration of octenol, another favorite attractant in the socks. Good hunting...
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