Mosquito control is most effective during the larval phase, when mosquito larvae are in small bodies of water.
Mosquitoes are a common pest, especially during the spring and summer months. To prevent pesky bug bites and the possibility of mosquito-borne illness, it is most effective to kill mosquito larvae at their youngest. The best method of prevention is to limit the amount of water pools available to egg-laying mosquitoes in your backyard by emptying old buckets, tires and plant holders. For small ponds and other ever-present bodies of water, treatment of the water may be your next best option. Does this Spark an idea?
Bacillus Thurigiensis Israelensis (Bti)
Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis, or Bti, is a compound found in most mosquito dunks products, which come in doughnut form and are sold at most hardware and garden centers. Bti is also in some mosquito granule products, which can be scattered throughout a small body of water. This compound is safe to other wildlife and ecology and is a natural bacteria that infects and kills mosquito larvae within a water source. The dosages are as follows:
Dunks: 1 dunk/100 sq ft of water; Lasts 30 days or more.
Granules: 1 tsp. per 25 sq. ft. or 1 tbsp. per 75 sq. ft. Every two weeks.
Methoprene
Methoprene can be found in granule form and is a juvenile growth hormone. Rather than a kill larvae, methoprene causes larvae to remain in an arrested state of juvenalia, thus preventing them from growing into mosquitoes. Methoprene is also used in small doses in certain foods to help control the possibility of bug infestation, and it is used in flea and tick medication.
Mosquito fish
Mosquito fish are the most natural way to alleviate mosquito infestations in small collections of water. Originally introduced in California in 1922, these fish have become a popular method for controlling water-borne bug infestations along the eastern and southern parts of the United States. The fish can eat mosquito larvae as quickly as they are produced, and also give live birth to their fish brood, after which these younger fish may also begin feeding. These fish are to be used only in contained bodies of water, rather than in natural habitats, because they have been shown to possibly destroy the eggs of amphibians in natural bodies of water such as lakes and ponds.
Natural household remedies
Olive oil has a suffocating effect on larvae in small bodies of water, and once added, will float to the the surface of the water. By pouring enough oil to coat the surface of the water body, the larvae will no longer be able to have access to air and will therefore stop growing. This technique may be preferable for small water containment.
Tags: bodies water, mosquito larvae, larvae small, larvae small bodies, Mosquito fish