Abstract

Bucket light traps are widely used in nocturnal insect surveys due to their effectiveness in attracting diverse insect taxa. To enhance the efficiency of bucket light traps and reduce survey costs, recent studies have examined various light sources, including conventional black-light UV (BL_UV) and newly introduced LED light sources. This study was conducted to improve the National Ecosystem Survey methodology, aimed at evaluating the efficiency of different light sources in bucket light traps and proposing optimized insect survey methods. We compared the capture efficiency of the current BL_UV light source with those of three LED types (UV [LED_UV], Blue [LED_B], and Green [LED_G]). Field surveys were conducted at six sites under consistent conditions, and samples were analyzed by taxonomic experts specializing in Lepidoptera, Coleoptera, Hymenoptera/Diptera, and Hemiptera/other taxa. In total, 2,036 individuals from 430 species, 92 families, and 11 orders were captured using four light sources. BL_UV and LED_UV showed significantly higher species richness and abundance than LED_B and LED_G. Statistical analyses (one-way analysis of variance and Scheffé tests) indicated no significant differences between BL_UV and LED_UV, but both outperformed LED_B and LED_G. Our results indicate that shorter wavelengths (355-405 nm) are more effective at attracting diverse nocturnal insects. We recommend the continued use of UV-type light sources, particularly LED_ UV, for long-term monitoring in the National Ecosystem Survey of Korea. Additionally, the combination of UV and medium wavelengths can further improve the capture efficiency.