Improved Bed Bug Sticky Trap with Textured Surface

Trap Effectively Lures Bed Bugs, Then Prevents Their Escape

This bed bug sticky trap is surrounded by a mildly textured surface that doesn’t discourage bugs and other crawling pests from crossing it but aids their capture, and prevents escape from the sticky trap. Bed bug infestations are an escalating problem in homes and hotels across the United States, with major cities such as Chicago, Los Angeles, and Cincinnati consistently ranking as having high levels of infestation. Bed bugs need to be detected/monitored so uncontrolled populations do not develop. Standard sticky traps used for insect control don’t work very well to capture them. University of Florida researchers have identified a means to make sticky traps more effective in capturing bed bugs and other crawling pests. If a sticky trap is surrounded by too smooth a surface a, bed bugs will avoid crossing it. Alternatively, if the sticky trap is surrounded by a surface with too much texture, bugs get enough traction to pull free of the trap. The improved sticky trap is designed to achieve a balance between a surface textured enough to entice bed bugs to walk across it to the sticky glue in the trap but smooth enough to ensure bugs cannot get a foothold to freedom. The trap can be used around households to capture bed bugs and other crawling pests, as well as for discrete use in hotels to monitor for bed bug presence.

Application

Sticky trap that captures and monitors presence of bed bugs and other pests without using either toxic or ineffective chemicals

Advantages

• Inexpensive to produce, creating an economical way to monitor for bed bugs or control an infestation
• Modifies conventional sticky traps, broadening field of use to include effective capture of bed bugs and other crawling insects
• Free of pesticides and harmful chemicals, safe for household use
• Discretely monitors for the presence of bed bugs and other pests, making the trap ideal for placement in hotel rooms

Technology

This bed bug sticky trap is designed to achieve the right balance between smooth and textured surfaces in order to monitor and capture bed bugs and other pests. Bed bugs tend to prefer textured surfaces, but surfaces surrounding a sticky trap that are too rough may allow bed bugs to gain a foothold and escape. To solve this issue, researchers at the University of Florida have designed a bed bug trap with a specific textured surface borderwhich surrounds the sticky surface of a sticky trap. The mildly textured surrounding the sticky surface is specifically designed to achieve a texture that doesn’t deter bed bugs but allows effective capture once they reach the sticky surface.