Title: Effects of filling catch basins with Mosquito Eliminating Mat on mosquito populations
Abstract:Catch basins in the drainage systems are important breeding places of mosquitoes in city areas. Mosquito Eliminating Mat is a physical control measure that is specialized to prevent mosquito breeding ...Catch basins in the drainage systems are important breeding places of mosquitoes in city areas. Mosquito Eliminating Mat is a physical control measure that is specialized to prevent mosquito breeding in catch basins. The present study attempted to examine whether Mosquito Eliminating Mat could prevent breeding of mosquitoes in 12 catch basins in the campus of Nagasaki University, southwestern Japan. Before application of the mat, larvae and pupae of Culex pipiens group, Aedes albopictus, and Lutzia vorax, were abundant in the catch basins. No larvae of C. pipiens or L. vorax were found in catch basins after applying the mats. High densities of A. albopictus larvae and pupae, possibly hatched from the pre-existed eggs, were observed in the catch basins 41 days after the treatment. However only one A. albopictus larva was observed in 3 months later, and no larvae were found in 9 and 10 months later. The Mosquito Eliminating Mat appeared to prevent completely new colonization of the mosquitoes to the catch basins. Decrease in the adult A. albopictus density near the treated catch basins was not confirmed, possibly due to the movement of the mosquitoes from neighboring residential areas to the campus.Read More