Woodlot and Grassland Pan Traps in Danby Woods

The data was collected on 30 September, 2014, at around 4:00 PM. The location was the Danby Woods at the York University Campus (Keele location.) The weather at the time was roughly 18°C. Using the Beaufort Scale, the wind was determined to be calm throughout the experiment.(Source: weatherspark.com/averages/28179/9/30/Toronto-Ontario-Canada) For both the Grassland and Woodlot, 10 pans of varying colors were arranged in different layouts (based on color) in a straight line, with 1 feet between them (transect.) The layouts can be seen above.

These pans were filled with soapy water to about half way of the pan. The soap allowed the water tension to be reduced, which allowed for insects to drown, as opposed to escape, due to the higher surface tension of water. Pans were allowed to sit for 1 hour, after which they were surveyed for their contents.