Abstract: Great advances in automated identification systems, or ‘smart traps’, that can remotely differentiate insect species have been made in recent years, yet convincing assessments of field-ready devices under free-flight conditions remain elusive. Here, we describe the results of the first mixed-species assessment of an optoacoustic smart trap design under free-flight conditions. Point-of-capture classification was attempted against congeneric (Aedes albopictus and Aedes aegypti) and non-congeneric (Ae. aegypti and Anopheles stephensi) container-inhabiting species of medical importance. The commonly co-collected Culex quinquefasciatus, a notable disease vector as well, was included as a third species in all assessments. Post-capture data cleaning, coupled with high species-level classification accuracy, resulted in a near perfect consensus between automated and physical trap counts across all release scenarios. The discriminatory success of the tested system is credited to its unique design and sensor arrangement that allowed for a tenfold increase in signal length relative to commercially available alternatives. Increased signal length enabled accurate species differentiation despite significant overlaps in wing beat frequency distributions. The results presented strongly encourage the continued development of optoacoustic smart trap designs targeting mosquitoes of medical and economic importance.
