Evaluation of coloured sticky traps for monitoring beneficial insects in apple orchards

Field experiments to evaluate four different coloured sticky traps for monitoring beneficial insects were conducted on Braeburn apple blocks in four commercial orchards situated in the Motueka region Traps used were white yellow and blue Corflute sheets and a clear Mylar sheet all coated on one side with adhesive (Tactrap) The sticky traps were deployed between 27 February and 24 March 2006 Each colour sticky trap was hung vertically from a branch within the tree and traps were replaced and rerandomised two times during the trapping period Beneficial insects monitored included Aphelinus mali Platygaster demades Anagrus sp Stethorus bifidus and Encarsia spp Results indicated that yellow was the best trap colour for catching A mali Stethorus and Encarsia and a clear trap was best for Anagrus sp Trap colour did not have a significant impact on the catch of P demades