Insect abundance using pan traps in the Saywell woodlot and Grasslands at York University

Data was collected on September 28th, 2015 at approximately 3:00 pm. The location of the study was conducted at both the Saywell woodlot and the grasslands located south of Stong pond on York University Keele Campus. Weather conditions during that time was approximately 21 degrees celsius with cloudy skies. The grasslands were slightly damp and moist due to the light rain that had occured prior to the study. The study began with placing 8 solo bowls filled with soapy water in the grassland at Stong pond. The pan traps (solo bowls) were placed approximately 3 meters apart in a vertical line using a transect to measure the distance. Pan traps were placed in an alternate pattern of different colors in order to catch different insects. A total distance of 24 meters was used across the grasslands to evenly distribute the 8 pan traps. The location of the pan traps was determined by choosing an area that was moist. This allowed a higher chance of insects being collected in each pan trap. The same steps were repeated at the Saywell woodlot for the remaining pan traps. Pan traps were placed at the edge of the woodlot due to the number of people that were walking along the trails. Once all the pan traps had been placed, there was a waiting time of approximately 1 hour which was timed using an iPhone. After 1 hour had passed by, the abundance and the number of different recognizable taxonomic units (rtus) for each pan trap was recorded. Common species that were found among each pan traps included: (i) Housefly (Musca Domestica), (ii) Spiders (Araneae), (iii) Beetles (Coleoptera), (iv) Dragonfly (Anisoptera), and (v) Crickets (Gryllidae).