Influence of different types of lamps on flying insects

Team leader: Zrinka Mesić

Members: Marija Ivković, Ivan Jurić, Nikolina Ričko

Influence of light on insects• Spectral influence on

insects– they see different then

humans

• It has an influence on their behavior (breading, feeding, there are becoming “easy prey”)

Chart which compares the sight of humans and insects

Insect Human

Method for catching insects• Catching on different lamps, on sheets • Problems: wind, influence of other lamps,

collecting insects in bottles, moon, predators

Field work • Working in Višnjan

and Tićan• In Višnjan we only

tried the metods • In Tićan we worked

with three lamps:– Mercury lamp– Sodium high

pressure lamp– Tungsten lamp

Conservating...

• Small insects were put in alcohol

• Moths were put on special plates

... And determinatingWe determinated part of mothsc and other orders of insects

Lymantria disparTimandra griseata

Some more pretty insectsWe also caught...

Culex pipiens

Scopula rubiginata

Emmelia trabealis

Problems with metods we used

• Predators: bats

• Insects were flying away, we couldn’t collect them all, especially some species

• We need new metods of collecting

• Problems with determination of insects

Statistical dataNumber of insects 26./27.07.2002.

0100200300400500600700

Na tungsten Hg

nu

mb

er

of

ins

ce

ts

Pertentages of insects by order caught on tungsten lamp on 27.07.2002

Orthoptera3%

Psocoptera6%

Neuroptera12%

Homoptera3%

Heteroptera6%

Hymenoptera0%

Lepidoptera40%

Mantodea3%

Diptera27%

Pertentages of insects by order caught on Sodium high pressure lamp on 27.07.2002

Araneae5%

Coleoptera10%

Diptera23%

Heteroptera5%

Homoptera3%

Lepidoptera33%

Mantodea3%

Neuroptera10%

Orthoptera3%

Psocoptera5%

Pertentages of insects by order caught on mercury lamp on 27.07.2002

Diptera27%

Lepidoptera40%

Homoptera3%

Heteroptera6%

Hymenoptera0%

Neuroptera12%

Orthoptera3%

Psocoptera6%

Mantodea3%

Conclusion

• Our observation showed that mercury lamp attracts insects the most. Whether tungstan or sodium high pressure lamp attracts them more is not evident. The reason for this is lack of observations partialy caused by strong wind and rain.