DOI: 10.5061/dryad.rbnzs7hrp
title: Data from: Mosquito and arbovirus surveillance in wetlands of South-East England: comparison of two adult mosquito traps, use of a novel trap with FTA cards, and arbovirus testing

description: Effective surveillance of mosquito populations is critical to monitoring
 and mitigating the spread of mosquito-borne diseases (MBDs). This study
 evaluated the relative trapping efficiency of two widely used adult
 mosquito traps—the Biogents BG-Sentinel 2 (BGS2) and the Mosquito Magnet®
 Executive (MM)—on British mosquitoes across four wetlands in south-east
 England over a 12-week period. A third trap, a Box-Gravid trap fitted with
 an FTA card, was deployed to detect arboviruses such as West Nile virus
 (WNV) via saliva collection. A total of 11,584 adult female mosquitoes
 representing 15 species were collected. The MM trap captured a
 significantly higher total number of mosquitoes, while the BGS2 trap
 demonstrated greater species evenness and was significantly more effective
 at catching Culex (Culex) pipiens L., 1758. Spatial variation strongly
 influenced catch rates, with significant differences between wetlands. No
 evidence of WNV was detected in any mosquito pools or FTA cards. While
 both trap types yielded similar species richness, the MM trap may be
 optimal for collecting large sample sizes of mammalophagic
 species, whereas the BGS2 is better suited for capturing enzootic vectors
 such as Culex pipiens s.l., and broader spectrum of species. These
 findings provide evidence-based recommendations for future UK wetland
 surveillance and enhance preparedness for emerging vector-borne disease
 risks.
description: Mosquito traps were operated in four wetlands in Kent in
 south-east England, targeting wetlands in the region where
 <em>Culex</em> <em>(Barraudius)</em>
 <em>modestus</em> Ficalbi, 1890, a vector of WNV, is known to
 occur (Supp. Info figure 1; Cliffe [latitude: 51.47364, longitude:
 0.47749], Northward Hill [51.46209, 0.54479], Stodmarsh [51.30388,
 1.18728], and Sandwich [51.27818, 1.36086]). Broadly, Cliffe, and
 Northward Hill are dominated by grazing marsh including flooded grassland
 and vegetated permanent ditches bounding grassland grazed by livestock.
 Stodmarsh is a large nature reserve including wet woodland, grazing marsh,
 vegetated permanent ditches, wet grassland, and reedbed. The Sandwich
 wetland is dominated by grazed arable fields, a large permanent ditch, wet
 grassland, and arable fields, noticeably less wetland habitat than the
 other wetlands studied here. This study did not quantify the scale of
 available habitat at each wetland. The traps were continuously operational
 across 11 weeks, (calendar week 27 (5th July 2022) to week 38 (20th
 September 2022)). At each wetland, a Mosquito Magnet® (MM) Executive trap
 (Woodstream Corporation, St. Joseph, MO, USA), using a propane cylinder
 (13kg propane supplied by Calor Ltd, Warwick, UK) and baited with an
 octenol (1- Octen-3-ol) lure (Woodstream Corporation) and a Biogents
 BG-Sentinel (BGS) baited with BG-Lure and CO2 (CO2 VB cylinder, 6.35kg,
 supplied by BOC Ltd, Woking, UK). Traps were located at three locations
 (A, B, C) with over 50 metres between them, apart from at Sandwich where
 traps were 20 metres apart due to access restrictions. Each week, the MM
 and the BGS traps were rotated between locations, so that the trap
 previously at location A was moved to location B, and vice-versa. The Box
 Gravid trap remained at location C for the duration of the study. The BGS2
 traps were powered using a photovoltaic panel system, comprising a 12V
 15Ah lead acid battery, 50W photovoltaic panel, and 10A 12V/24V charge
 controller (Photonic Universe PU1024BW). Box-Gravid traps (figure 1),
 based on the design of the modified Reiter-Cummings gravid trap (Cummings,
 1992; Fynmore et al., 2021; Reiter, 1983). These traps consisted of two
 main components: a lower tray with hay infusion (5 L of liquid attractant,
 consisting of a hay infusion made by mixing 0.9 kg of hay with 114 L of
 water), and the main trap body which held the components and BugDorm
 (model TM -4M1515 Insect Rearing Cage [175mm x175mmx175mm]). The lower
 tray was a stackable black plastic tray (470 x 350 x170mm) with drainage
 hole, while the main trap body was a black toolbox (Stanley Tool Box
 19" 2 Pieces, 250 mm x 485 mm). The main body stood on two
 construction bricks placed within the tray. Two 60 mm diameter holes were
 drilled centrally into the bottom and left-hand side of the toolbox using
 a hole saw. The lower hole was used to insert a 3Dprinted intake pipe
 (figure 1) and net holder with embedded magnets to affix it in place. The
 fan was bolted in place over the left-hand side hole. The intake pipe was
 sealed at one end, with an exit hole on the side of the tube, to prevent
 mosquitoes from falling directly out of the trap and into the water.
 Inside the toolbox, a 120mm 12V DC axial fan, powered by the battery
 stowed within the toolbox, was bolted to the interior covering the
 left-hand drilled hole. The fan was powered by a 12V 15aH leadacid battery
 connected to a charge controller and 50W photovoltaic panel, allowing for
 unlimited run time. The BugDorm was placed over entrance hole, oriented
 with the entrance port facing downwards in line with the intake pipe, and
 the entrance port sleeve was tucked into the sleeve holder on the 3D
 printed inlet, and the main trap body was then positioned over the lower
 tray. Whatman™ FTA™ Classic cards (GE Healthcare Life Sciences,
 Buckinghamshire, UK) soaked in Manuka honey solution (10% honey to
 distilled water) were prepared using a procedure similar to previously
 published methods (Flies et al., 2015; Wipf et al., 2019). The cards were
 cut into equal quarters, soaked in honey solution overnight, and placed
 into plastic resealable bags, with a 1.5 cm square hole cut in the front
 to provide mosquitoes access to the FTA™ cards. A cotton pad, soaked in
 the honey solution, was placed behind the FTA™ card to keep it moist
 during deployment. The FTA™ card was then affixed to the inside of the
 BugDorm TM on the opaque plastic side. All traps were checked weekly on a
 Tuesday, and FTA™ cards, BugDorms, and catch bags removed and labelled,
 and placed on dry ice. Upon return to the laboratory, mosquitoes were
 removed and stored at -80oC. FTA™ cards were stored at room temperature.
 Mosquito identification Female mosquitoes were identified morphologically
 using taxonomic keys (Becker et al., 2010; Cranston et al., 1987; Snow,
 1990). Where morphological identification was not possible, due to
 requiring DNA analysis methods, species were grouped as follows: Culex
 pipiens sensu lato (s.l.) = Cx. (Culex) pipiens Linnaeus, 1758 and Cx.
 (Culex.) torrentium Martini, 1925; Aedes cantans/annulipes = Ae.
 (Ochlerotatus) cantans (Meigen, 1818) and Ae. (Ochlerotatus) annulipes
 (Meigen, 1830).
description: # Data from: Mosquito and arbovirus surveillance in wetlands of South-East
 England: comparison of two adult mosquito traps, use of a novel trap with
 FTA cards, and arbovirus testing Dataset DOI:
 [10.5061/dryad.rbnzs7hrp](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.rbnzs7hrp) ##
 Description of the data and file structure ### Files and variables ####
 File: Vaux_et_al_trap_comparison_2025.csv ##### Variables * tube number =
 sample ID number * date collected = date trap contents collected (DDMMYYY)
 * calendar week = annual week number * trap = trap type (BGS2; MM; Box
 Gravid) * site_code = abbreviated site name (S, C, N, ST) * site = wetland
 name (Sandwich, Cliffe, Northward Hill, Stodmarsh) * species = species
 name (genus and species) * count = number of adult female mosquitoes *
 count_tn = mean number of adult female mosquitoes per trap night (count
 devided by trap nights (7)) * pools = number of pools per sample *
 location = location of trap in the wetland (A, B, C) ## Code/software n/a
 ## Access information n/a