Efficiency of traps with different shape, background color and location to monitor Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius) adults on Anaheim pepper ( Capsicum annuum L.) crop

Sticky traps are widely used for monitoring Bemisia tabaci populations, and their efficiency is affected by their design and location within crops. Exist few information about these factors, especially on pepper crops ( Capsicum annuum L.) under open field conditions, therefore, the objectives of this study were to determine the efficiency of sticky traps with different shapes, background colors, and locations to monitor B. tabaci adults within Anaheim pepper. In the first part of this study, two assays with six trap shapes and seven colored backgrounds were evaluated. A significantly higher number of adults were captured on triangular, rectangular, and ellipsoid traps in comparison with the other shapes. The sticky traps with yellow and black backgrounds showed no significant difference on the number of insects between them but they did with the other colors. In the second part, three assays were done to evaluate the effect of four different trap orientations, five side distances from the center of row to the inter-row space and five trap heights. While as trap orientation did not have a significant effect on insects captured, traps installed at 0–40 cm aside from the row center during the early crop growth and 0–60 cm during the reproductive phase caught a significant highest number of adults. Traps placed at a height of 0 cm during the vegetative phase, and at 0–20 cm during the reproductive phase captured the maximum number of adults. This study provides new useful insights for monitoring whiteflies with sticky traps in open field conditions.