The first thing you notice about the Gemlight Super is its size in comparison to the more conventional lights, which for taking into the field is immediately appealing.
The battery pack being the size of a mobile phone also makes this setup extremely transportable even for trips abroad.
The battery powers the light for 9-10 hours which I felt was excellent for a pack of its size.
The unit can also be connected to a PC which, with the use of a terminal emulator, provides a means of adjusting certain parameters as well as displaying reports.
The parameter I would like to change is the time the unit switches off which I find too early as the ambient light is still insufficient to see any moths in and around the trap without the use of a torch. I believe this can be done although I have not changed any settings during the testing.
Another issue is that the Gemlight is only showerproof with instructions to place in a plastic bag to be safe. I would have thought the unit could easily be hermetically sealed to make it waterproof, and the idea of the plastic bag only conjures the possibility of condensation in my mind.
The task, now that the Moonlander has been discarded, is how to mount it onto a more conventional trap in the hope of improved success whilst providing some sort of protection from the rain.
My first step was making a mount for my Skinner trap, enabling tests alongside the actinic and mercury vapour lights for comparison.
This was reasonably straightforward using two ink cartridge holders and an Indian takeaway container as shown in the picture below.
Although the catches were markedly lower than the other two lights, I did trap moths with a few entering the trap itself.
I couldn’t help feeling during the tests that I could achieve more success if I could concentrate the light more on the trap entrance.
Although the light is extremely bright (and is dangerous if care is not taken to prevent eye damage) it acts more like a torch.
Also taking the Skinner into the field defeated my objective of downsizing.
In Part 2, I will document my approach to resolving these issues finishing with the solution we took with us to Ireland.