Purple Thingie

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1. 1
   

   sisu

   May 7, 2012 at 6:33 am (UTC -7) Link to this comment

   If it were in MN (where I am) it’d be a gypsy moth pheromone trap (see here: http://www.extension.umn.edu/distribution/horticulture/dg2363.html scroll halfway down). So my guess would be a trap for whatever sort of invasive moths you have in NYC.

2. 2
   

   Pierce R. Butler

   May 7, 2012 at 6:54 am (UTC -7) Link to this comment

   It’s the initial scout for an alien invasion.

   I for one welcome our new purple thingie overlords.

3. 3
   

   Coragyps

   May 7, 2012 at 7:01 am (UTC -7) Link to this comment

   This part of Texas is blanketed with boll weevil traps, which are similar to the moth traps Sisu links to. These look like a small green bouy, and sit on a dowel (as we have no trees to hang them from….)

4. 4
   

   jamessweet

   May 7, 2012 at 7:07 am (UTC -7) Link to this comment

   My guess was some sort of sky lantern, but it sounds like those who are leaning towards some type of insect trap are probably on better footing.

5. 5
   

   chezjake

   May 7, 2012 at 7:07 am (UTC -7) Link to this comment

   I suspect that it’s a detector (not a trap) for the emerald ash borer.

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   Brian Ogilvie

   May 7, 2012 at 7:29 am (UTC -7) Link to this comment

   Darn! Chezjake beat me to the punch. Emerald Ash Borer trap. I don’t think there’s a detector/trap distinction here because it detects them by trapping them in glue.

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   aspidoscelis

   May 7, 2012 at 7:30 am (UTC -7) Link to this comment

   It is a triangular prism.

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   Brian Ogilvie

   May 7, 2012 at 7:32 am (UTC -7) Link to this comment

   For more exciting reading on the traps, including why they are purple, take a look at this PDF from the USDA.