Looking for the gold standard: assessment of the effectiveness of four traps for monitoring mosquitoes in Italy

Several kinds of traps are available for the collection of Culicidae species creating nuisance problems and/or a potential risk of pathogen transmission. The choice of the most appropriate sampling device should take into consideration the objective of the monitoring activity (e.g., faunistic research, vector control evaluation, arbovirus surveillance, etc.), the ecological and behavioral characteristics of the target mosquito species, and the ecology of the sampling areas. However, there are few factual criteria technical personnel can rely on to choose the most suitable sampling method, particularly when the targets are represented by mosquito species in temperate areas. We carried out a Latin square experiment in three ecologically different settings in Mantua municipality (northern Italy) to compare the performance of four different traps targeting host-seeking mosquitoes: two traps specifically designed for mosquito monitoring purposes (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention CO2 trap and Biogents BG Eisenhans de Luxe trap) and two designed to reduce mosquito densities in outdoor domestic settings (Activa Acti Power Trap PV 440 and Activa Acti Power Trap MT 250 Plus). Overall, 1,930 specimens belonging to nine species were collected and differences in the performance of the four traps with reference to their ability to detect overall species diversity, as well as to collect single species, were highlighted. These observations, coupled with an analysis of the costs associated with the trap's purchase, operation, and servicing, provide useful indications for the implementation of mosquito monitoring in temperate areas.