Small-scale field trial of a sensing device for detecting peridomestic populations of Triatoma infestans (Hemiptera : Reduviidae) in northwestern Argentina

Two prototypes of sensing devices for detecting peridomestic populations of Triatoma infestans Klug were tested in paired trials with bamboo canes in Amama and nearby rural villages under triatomine surveillance. In infested peridomestic structures housing domestic animals, 1-2 pairs of numbered dev ices were placed per test site, left for 3-9 nights, and inspected for evid ence of infestation. Prototype A was a black plastic cylinder 19 cm high an d 10 cm diameter, with a screw cap on the top, 2 openings in the bottom, an d a removable central structure made of resistant plastic coated with leath er. Prototype B had square leather pieces rolled into cylinders instead of the central structure. Prototype A was significantly more sensitive than th e bamboo cane with pleated paper inside in 13 test sites in which 20 pairs were tried. In a smaller series involving 7 pairs, prototype B also detecte d infestations more frequently than the cane. Triatomine feces were the sig ns most frequently recorded by both prototypes, whereas the bamboo canes re corded no feces. Ten T. infestans and 1 Triatoma guasayana Wygodzinsky & Av alos were collected from the prototypes placed on the ground or walls, not beneath the thatched roofs of the animal shelters, whereas only 3 T. infest ans were collected from the canes. This study describes an effective sensin g device for detecting T, infestans populations in outdoor animal shelters and provides quantitative field data on its performance.