Evaluation of Slug Refuge Traps in a Soybean Reduced-Tillage Cover Crop System

摘要

Slugs have become more frequent pests of field crops, including soybean. Monitoring slugs during the day is difficult because slugs are nocturnal, so trapping is often used to monitor populations. A variety of traps have been developed, though there are few direct comparisons of the different trap types. The objective of this study was to compare trapping efficiency of two types of slug refuge traps in soybeans. We tested a traditional shingle trap and a modified shingle trap with a water-filled pitfall trap beneath it. The modified shingle traps captured significantly more slugs than the traditional shingle trap, mainly due to the pitfall component (which was significantly cooler than the shingle component). As slug density decreased, this trend was most pronounced, suggesting that the modified shingle trap is a more sensitive sampling tool which may be useful in agronomic slug research.