The effectiveness of the raccoon bait trap

Abstract

In the management of alien raccoon (Procyon lotor), confirming the presence of the species is crucial. Raccoon bait traps, which can be easily and inexpensively constructed, serve as a method for confirming raccoon visits. However, their effectiveness as a detection method, including their detection power, remains unclear. In this study, we investigated the detection power of bait traps in confirming presence by assessing false-positive and false- negative rates per visit. Additionally, we compared the effectiveness of bait traps with that of camera trapping. The results showed that the false-positive rate per other carnivore visit for bait traps was 0.00, indicating a low rate, while the false-negative rate was 0.66 (95% CI: 0.55–0.76), suggesting a high rate. Furthermore, there was a significant correlation between the measurements made using bait traps and the frequency of captures using camera traps, with higher capture frequencies correlating with more positive determinations. These findings suggest that bait traps have a certain level of effectiveness for confirming presence. Although the false-negative rate per visit was high, no false-positives were observed in this study. Therefore, by implementing strategies, such as long-term and large-scale deployment, bait traps could potentially become an effective method for detecting presence of raccoons.