Page 118 - Studia Universitatis Hereditati, vol 12(1) (2024)

stiffened with wire to prevent drooping. A drum
made from an old tin is inserted between the up-
per and lower centres. It is fixed with paper fas-
teners. Suspension is through the upper part of
the drum. Around the drum is wrapped a strip
of Tanglefoot paper (PRAAD, Kumase, ARG
1/14/16, Tsetse Traps, 1935).

Two Petrol Tin Traps
This trap is quite difficult to make, unlike the
Catherine wheel trap. It is mostly made by cut-
ting three patterns in brown paper. These pat-
118 terns are marked and cut on a tin of metal. One
tin is converted into the top part through which
a suspension is placed, and a drum a sixteenth
studia universitatis hereditati, letnik 12 (2024), številka 1 / volume 12 (2024), number 1
of the circumference is reverted to the top. Slots
are cut in this top to take clips from the low-
er tin. The side of the second tin is converted
into vanes by cutting along their edges, leaving
sufficient tin at the edges to give support and
leaving uncut similar diagonal ends. When the
cuts are made in the top of the second tin the
centre falls away, leaving four triangular clips
which are bent up to slip through the slots in
the top. Four further triangles running from
clip to clip are left. These are bent down into the
tin and the upper free ends of the vanes are fas-
tened to these by bending over the edge of the
Figure 2 A sketched image of two petrol tin tsetse trap.
Source: (PRAAD, Kumase, ARG 1/14/16, Tsetse Traps, vane. The drums is then covered with a piece of
1935). Tanglefoot paper and lowered into the second
tin, and the clip passes through the slots and
tsetse traps became the most effective means of are bent over. The materials for this trap could
sampling the tsetse population and examining be found almost everywhere within the Gold
their distribution but also impacted efforts made Coast (PRAAD, Kumase, ARG 1/14/16, Tset-
at reducing the incidence of trypanosomiasis in se Traps, 1935).
tsetse-prone areas. In Asante, the colonial ad-
ministration resorted to the use of several tsetse Basin Trap
traps. These included the Catherine wheel trap, Another tsetse trap used in Asante was the ba-
two petrol tin traps, and the basin trap among sin trap. The trap consisted of a drum cut down
others (PRAAD, Kumase, ARG 1/14/16, Tsetse to a tin basin in which vanes have been cut, sim-
Traps, 1935). Four of these traps will be discussed ilar to the vanes in a smoke diffuser for chim-
in subsequent paragraphs. ney tops. Tanglefoot paper is wrapped around
the drum and fastened to it by paper. It is im-
Catherine Wheel Trap portant to note that these traps alone could not
The Catherine wheel trap was made from met- exterminate flies; in places where tsetse traps
al casings used to import matches. The vanes are were used there was also some degree of clearing