Used
for the collection of insects, particularly Hymenoptera and
Diptera It does not require any light source or suction
method so is an ideal method for comparisons to be made over
areas, crops or interesting habitats.
Use of Malaise Trap
Consider the trap to be a small, oblong tent. It
has two short end walls but no walls on the sides, however
it has a central diaphram. Instead of the peak being
over the centre of the tent as is the normal case with a tent,
the peak is set above one end.
The trap is set up with four corner posts about 1200mm long.
To control the tension in the material, it assists if the
guy cord goes from a tent corner to an offset post and then
down to a peg in the ground.
The collecting bottles are inserted at the outer side of the
peak, and the unit is fixed onto its own pole and controlled
by its own guys; one will suit however two are better.

The ideal position for setting up the trap in the southern
hemisphere is at right angles to an insect flight line on
the north side of an east-west running hedge with the bottle
end nearest the hedge.
Collecting can be done wet into alcohol, or, if required,
dry by placing an insect killer, vapona strip or liquid (in
this case, a gauze strip is needed to prevent the insects
getting wet) into the bottom bottle.
Available in a very fine, soft terylene material with black
walls and a white roof. The netting material is a 28 gauge
terylene which is more resistant to UV deterioration than
Nylon and the thread causes less damage to insect wings than
the harder fibres of Nylon netting. The panels are joined
with a Nylon tape. It is fitted with the "Museum"
type collecting head which can be used for either dry or wet
collecting using either a knock-down agent such as alcohol
or Vapona strip for killing specimens.
The trap consists of a collecting head, a spare collecting
bottle, six plastic tent pegs, two jubilee clips for attaching
the head to the main support post, and six strong nylon cords
as guy ropes. The support posts are not supplied.
Support posts required are: One main support post for the
bottle end attachment approximately 1800mm long, four (4)
corner posts, say 1200 x 25 x 25mm and one post for the low
end.