February 11, 2014 – Skyhaven Systems, LLC has been awarded a contract with the Defense Health Program to produce a vector arthropod trap using a carbon dioxide attractant source. The military desires an improved trap to attract, capture, and hold arthropods that may carry disease causing pathogens. The trap needs a continuous source of carbon dioxide over an 8 hour period to attract flea and tick species that are subsequently trapped and held alive for five days. Furthermore, the arthropod trap needs to be smaller than a 2” diameter by 4.5” cylindrical shape to fit into burrows while also weighing less than 3 lbs. Existing arthropod traps are either excessively bulky and heavy limiting their portability, or extremely simplistic limiting their effectiveness. Additionally, the CO2 source is often based on using dry ice or a propane burner adding significant logistical challenges in military service areas. Skyhaven Systems has previously shown a method that produces carbon dioxide with a minimum of consumable items that are logistically available in military operating areas. With this approach, Skyhaven is integrating their compact CO2 generator into a new arthropod trap design that produces a CO2 rich stream that permeates from the trap over 8 hours followed by a trickle flow of CO2 over 5 days to hold and maintain the trapped arthropods.