title: Development of a novel trap for the collection of black flies of the Simulium ochraceum complex.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Human landing collections are currently the standard method for collecting onchocerciasis vectors in Africa and Latin America. As part of the efforts to develop a trap to replace human landing collections for the monitoring and surveillance of onchocerciasis transmission, comprehensive evaluations of several trap types were conducted to assess their ability to collect Simulium ochraceum sensu lato, one of the principal vectors of Onchocerca volvulus in Latin America.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Diverse trap designs with numerous modifications and bait variations were evaluated for their abilities to collect S. Ochraceum s.l. females. These traps targeted mostly host seeking flies. A novel trap dubbed the "Esperanza window trap" showed particular promise over other designs. When baited with CO2 and BG-lure (a synthetic blend of human odor components) a pair of Esperanza window traps collected numbers of S. Ochraceum s.l. females similar to those collected by a team of vector collectors.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The Esperanza window trap, when baited with chemical lures and CO2 can be used to collect epidemiologically significant numbers of Simulium ochraceum s.l., potentially serving as a replacement for human landing collections for evaluation of the transmission of O. volvulus.
authors.affiliation: Centro de Biotecnología Genómica, Instituto Politécnico Nacional, Reynosa, Tamaulipas, México ; Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León, Monterrey, Nuevo León, México.
authors.forename: Mario A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Rodríguez-Pérez
authors.forename: Monsuru A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Adeleke
authors.forename: Nathan D
authors.initials: ND
authors.lastname: Burkett-Cadena
authors.forename: Javier A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Garza-Hernández
authors.forename: Filiberto
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Reyes-Villanueva
authors.forename: Eddie W
authors.initials: EW
authors.lastname: Cupp
authors.forename: Laurent
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Toé
authors.forename: Mario C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Salinas-Carmona
authors.forename: Américo D
authors.initials: AD
authors.lastname: Rodríguez-Ramírez
authors.forename: Charles R
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Katholi
authors.forename: Thomas R
authors.initials: TR
authors.lastname: Unnasch
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D005260:Female; D006790:Host-Parasite Interactions; D006801:Humans; D007300:Insect Control / Q000379:methods*; D007303:Insect Vectors / Q000469:parasitology*; D017181:Onchocerca volvulus / Q000502:physiology*; D009855:Onchocerciasis / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000635:transmission; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012843:Simuliidae / Q000469:parasitology*