ARS | Publication request: MOSQUITO MAGNETS AS BARRIER TREATMENTS AGAINST SALT MARSH MOSQUITOES AROUND RESIDENTIAL HOUSES IN MARSH AREA

Submitted to: Technical Bulletin of the Florida Mosquito Control Association
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: February 15, 2005
Publication Date: February 17, 2005
Citation: Xue, R., Santoro, A., Kline, D.L., Grant, A. 2005. Mosquito magnets as barrier treatments against salt marsh mosquitoes around residential houses in marsh area. Technical Bulletin of the Florida Mosquito Control Association.

Technical Abstract: In recent years, more residential homes have been built around the marsh areas located on the Intra-Coastal Waterway (ICW) and brought more complaints about marsh mosquitoes. Many homeowner associations have created policies and regulations that forbid the spraying of pesticides. The new challenge has forced our mosquito control district to look for alternative strategies and methods to control marsh mosquitoes. The ABC Mosquito Magnet Traps as barrier treatments have been evaluated around residential houses in Marsh Creek (624 houses) in Anastasia Island, St. Augustine, Florida. The residential neighborhood was divided into north and south subdivisions. We used one side for treatment and the other side for control and rotated every week. The effectiveness of barrier treatments was conducted by monitoring mosquito populations via 2 pickle jar traps with dry ice as attractant in the center of each subdivision and 1-minute landing rate counts near each trap site and at the center of the site. The mosquito magnets have caught more than 91,000 mosquitoes in 18 species and more than 2 million sand flies, and significantly reduced landing rate counts in the treated subdivision, compared to the control subdivision during the last 4 week experiments. The experiment will be continued in the area for more weeks.