Evaluation of four different bait traps to sample wireworms (Coleoptera: Elateridae) infesting wheat and barley crops in Montana

Wireworms are the most important soil insect pest of wheat and barley in Montana. Baited pitfall traps have been used in several studies in North America for sampling wireworms in soil. Wheat, wheat/corn mixtures, oatmeal, and grain sorghum seeds as well as pieces of carrot and potato have been used as bait in underground pitfall traps. In general, wireworms were equally attracted by all baits. Baited pitfall traps used to assess absence/presence of wireworms in crops and grassland is a more labor efficient method compared to sampling soil cores. We compared underground classical pitfall, pot, stocking and canister traps in spring wheat and barley fields during spring and summer of 2010. We will outline captures made with the four pitfall traps baited with a wheat/barley mixture along with seasonal distribution of the different species that were collected.