Frass Length Measurements during Caged Sampler Type Comparisons

We designed two new samplers for monitoring airborne particulates, including fungal and fern spores and plant pollen, that rely on natural wind currents (Passive Environmental Sampler) or a battery operated fan (Active Environmental Sampler). Both samplers are modeled after commercial devices such as the Rotorod® and the Burkard® samplers, but are more economical and require less maintenance than commercial devices. We compared our two new samplers to Rotorod® samplers using Xyleborus spp. boring dust (frass) known to contain fungi responsible for Rapid Ohia Death. The comparison was done in a large outdoor field cage to determine relative effectiveness of the three samplers for capturing windblown boring dust. The dataset contains measurements of boring dust particles that were captured by the three types of samples over the course of twelve trials.