Our tray-type Berlese funnel is designed to let moisture evaporate naturally through the netting in the top compartment. It can rapidly extract soil-dwelling arthropods without requiring a heat source, especially when only a thin layer of leaf litter or humus is placed on the tray. This makes the tray-type Berlese funnel an efficient tool for locations without electricity. Because it is lightweight (320 grams) and the tray is stackable, many can be packed for field trips.
Each tray-type Berlese funnel consists of five parts: top, tray, funnel, connector, and collecting tube. The top compartment is of white Nylon netting (104 x 94 mesh/square inch) to permit light to enter and moisture to evaporate quickly.
The tray is made of grey plastic and cut into a grille (7 mm sieve opening) to hold soil samples. The bottom funnel is black, smooth nylon cloth. The Eppendorf tube connector is PE plastic and connects the funnel to a collecting tube. Each tray-type Berlese funnel comes with one Eppendorf tube (50 ml) for collection containers. When the expected extraction amount is large, other containers (e.g., Whirl-Pak® sampling bag, NOT sold at the BugDorm Store) may be tied onto the connector.
The fast-release design of the tube connector permits the cleaning of overlooked specimens from the bottom opening.
Pack Contents
x3 Fabric Funnel Bodies
x3 Mesh Trays
x3 Tube Connectors (2 parts)
x3 Eppendorf Tubes (50ml)
x3 Carrying Bags
Studies Using This Line of Products
Nomura & Aung (2020). Bull. Natl. Mus. Nat. Sci., Ser. A, 46(4), 203-213.
Linzmeier & Konstantinov (2020). Zootaxa, 4786(1), 1-22.
Konstantinov et al. (2023). Journal of Insect Biodiversity, 38(2), 48-72.
Leponce et al. (2024). Frontiers in Forests and Global Change, 7, 1425492.