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The dynamics of stable fly, Stomoxys calcitrans (L.), populations relative to temperature and precipitation were evaluated in a 13-yr study in eastern Nebraska. During the course of the study, >1.7 million stable flies were collected on an array of 25 sticky traps. A log-normal model using degree-days with a 15 °C threshold and weekly lags 0-4 for temperature and 2-7 for precipitation provided the best fit with the observed data. The relationships of temperature and precipitation to stable fly trap catches were both curvilinear, with maxima at 6.6 degreeday- 15 (≈22 °C) and 7.4mm precipitation per day, respectively. The temperature and precipitation model accounted for 72% of the variance in seasonal trap catches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND Stable flies are considered to be one of the major blood-feeding pests in the US livestock industry, causing losses running into billions of dollars annually. Adult stable flies are highly attracted to Alsynite traps; however, Alsynite is becoming increasingly difficult to obtain and is expensive. RESULTS Here, we report on the development of a less expensive and more efficacious trap based upon a white panel with the option to add visual and olfactory stimuli for enhanced stable fly trapping. White panel traps caught twice as many stable flies than Alsynite traps. Baiting the traps with synthetic manure volatiles increased catches 2-3-fold. Electroretinographic recordings of stable flies showed strong peaks of visual sensitivities occurring at 330-360 nm, 460-525 nm and 605-635 nm. A laboratory study indicated that young stable flies are more responsive to white, whereas gravid females prefer blue; in the field, white traps caught more stable flies than patterned or blue-black traps. CONCLUSION Stable fly control can be enhanced by developing more efficient trapping systems with added visual and olfactory stimuli. Published 2015. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Spatial and temporal relationships among catches of adult stable flies, Stomoxys calcitrans (L.), on sticky traps in eastern Nebraska were evaluated. Twenty-five alsynite sticky traps were placed ill a 5 by 5 grid with ≈1.6-km intervals in a mixed agricultural environment from 200:3 to 2011. Denser grids of 45-90 traps were implemented for varying lengths of time during the course of the study. More than two million stable flies were collected over 9 yr. Seasonal abundances based upon total collections from the primary grid of 25 traps were bimodal most years with population peaks ill June and September or October. Individual trap catches varied greatly, both spatially and temporally. Trap catches were spatially aggregated with autocorrelation extending to ≈2 km. Synchrony among trap catches declined linearly with respect to distance between traps and differences in seasonal distribution increased asymptotically relative to distance between traps. Proximity to confined live-stock facilities increased catch and proportion of catch collected later in the season. Fifteen to 20 traps were adequate for estimating stable fly populations with the standard error of the mean equal to 30% of the mean for most of the stable fly season. Early and late in the season, when mean trap catches were low, between 100 and 135 traps would be needed to maintain that level of confidence. Seasonal collection distributions from permutations of subsets of the data with fewer than 24 traps differed significantly from those of the complete grid of 25 traps, indicating that 20 or more traps may be needed to evaluate the seasonal dynamics of a stable fly population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Adult stable flies (Stomoxys calcitrans L.) are known to feed readily on sugars in the laboratory. However, little is known concerning the extent of stable fly sugar feeding in wild populations. We examined the frequency of sugar feeding in stable flies collected on Alsynite sticky traps in rural and urban environments. In addition, stable flies were visually examined to determine whether blood was present in the gut. In laboratory studies, sugars were detectable with the anthrone technique in stable flies for ≈3 d after being imbibed, and blood could be visually detected in the gut for 24-48 h after feeding. Twelve percent of the field-collected flies had detectable sugar with a higher percentage of the urban flies having sugar fed than the rural flies, 21 and 8%, respectively. Female flies sugar fed at a slightly higher rate than males, 13 versus 11%, respectively. Less than 1% of the field-collected flies had blood in their guts. The frequency of observable blood was slightly higher in flies collected in an urban environment compared with those collected in a rural environment and did not differ between male and female flies. The number of flies with both blood and sugar was slightly higher than would be expected based on the frequencies of each alone. Seasonal patterns of both sugar feeding and blood feeding were similar in the rural and urban environments; both peaked in the early summer, May to mid-June, and dropped through the summer and fall. Sugar feeding in the urban environment increased again in October. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]