Smart Control Method: Leveraging on Mosquito Behaviour

Singapore has seen continuous circulation of Dengue, a mosquito-transmitted disease that can cause terrible fever and internal bleeding. Diseases like Dengue and Zika are transmitted by day-biting Aedes mosquitoes. Mosquitoes are specialized in biting humans and are difficult to combat. They can bite you without you noticing them because of their special stealth mode landing and take-off manoeuvres. When you notice the itchy bumps it is already too late.

Did you know that only female mosquitoes take blood and spread diseases? They do so to develop eggs for a new generation of mosquitoes. When the female mosquito takes a blood meal, she will insert some saliva into the victim’s body to reduce blood clotting and take a quick blood meal. Unfortunately, this mosquito saliva can be infected with a virus such as Dengue or Zika. When an infected mosquito bites you, the virus will be transmitted and you can become ill. The presence of Aedes mosquitoes therefore poses serious health risks for people.

Mosquitoes bite everyone, including you. They are most active during day time, yet they do bite at night if they are unable to find a blood meal in the day. Currently there is no treatment or vaccine available for Dengue or Zika, and everyone can be affected by these diseases. Prevention methods are the best, such as preventing mosquito breeding and preventing mosquito bites. One method to avoid getting bitten is to protect with a mosquito repellent. A more effective method is to reduce the mosquito population; by reducing breeding sites in your surroundings.

The female Aedes mosquito will look for the best spot for her larvae to develop. Ideal breeding sites for these mosquitoes can be as small as a 20 cents-sized drop of water. Aedes mosquito larvae are often found in stagnant water in flower pots, small plastic containers, drains, discarded tyres and roof gutters. These breeding places can be found anywhere, are hard to find and challenging to treat. The Aedes female spreads its risks when selecting ideal breeding sites for her offspring; it will lay a few eggs in many different water containers.

Warm weather and tropical rain are optimal for accelerated breeding of the Aedes mosquitoes and is likely to lead to an increase in the number of Dengue cases. So, what can you do to prevent mosquitoes around your home? We need a smart control method to manage mosquitoes- let mosquitoes do the mosquito control for you…

A smart control method: Let mosquitoes do the mosquito control for you

The In2Care Mosquito Trap is an innovative and environmentally-friendly mosquito control tool. It targets both adult mosquitoes and their larvae. Leveraging on typical adult female mosquito behaviour, the water-filled black container attracts them when they are ready to lay their eggs. When the mosquito enters the trap, it lands on the floater treated with In2Mix and gets infected with these biocides. It will lay a batch of eggs in the trap, but these will never develop into adult mosquitoes as they get killed by a special larvicide in the water.

The infected adult female on the other hand, is allowed to fly out of the trap to continue its search for new breeding sites. However, it is now carrying the larvicide powder that it will spread to all surrounding breeding sites it visits. In this way, female mosquitoes control larval development in surrounding breeding sites up to 400 m² around the trap. The adult female mosquito is slowly killed by the larvicide that causes her to be less able to bite and to die within 7 to 14 days.

The effective control of mosquito breeding sites surrounding the trap reduces the mosquito population. It prevents the emergence of new mosquitoes from breeding sites and therefore helps to continuously and consistently control mosquitoes around your home.

A professional pest control company in Singapore can help to safely deploy using 1 trap per 400 metre square, which adds up to 10 traps per acre.

You can stop the development of mosquitoes! Speak with an expert in pest control to discuss more on how you can benefit from this smart control method for your mosquito control today! Call (65) 6347 8138