Fighting mosquitoes

Fighting mosquitoes means putting into practice precise fighting practices that can be classified into: larcivida,adultida and informative.

The fight against mosquitoes must envisage several fronts, it is no coincidence that you will usually hear about integrated pest management. Deploying just one of the weapons at our disposal rarely has the desired effects, instead it is necessary to act on the main aspects to decisively nip this annoying weed species.

The war against mosquitoes is based on three very specific pillars, for further information on the periods in which it is best to take action, you can also refer to the anti-mosquito calendar.

Larvicidal fight

Larvicidal control concerns all practices useful for preventing, slowing down or reducing the reproduction of mosquitoes. It is known that these cursed insects need water for the eggs to become larvae and then adults. It is no coincidence that the summer catchphrase is to eliminate every possible container that could contain stagnant water. But the elimination of stagnations is not the only way to carry out the larvicidal fight.

Removing or managing stagnation: In addition to physically eliminating the source of stagnation, it is possible to manage the collection of water. For example by placing mosquito nets over the rainwater collection bins or using the tilting mosquito nets to protect the water drains.

Larvicidal: Adding larvicidal products to stagnant water is an environmentally friendly and highly recommended practice. The main larvicide for domestic use is Bacillus Thuringiensis, extremely selective and not harmful to the environment, it can be added every 15 days or after every heavy downpour in wells, water collection bins, ornamental tanks and in all those places where there they are stagnation. It is commercially available in convenient tablets. For the saucers, which generally contain a small amount of water and are subject to drying up, the use of Zanzibar is recommended, an enzyme that reacts with the limestone contained in the waters (all, even rainwater) creating a film on the surface of the water which does not allow the larvae to breathe. Guaranteed eco-compatibility by EUGEA.

Ovitrappole: Ovitrappoles are one of the most innovative and effective methods, they are ideal false stagnation places where mosquitoes can lay their eggs and from which adults will never fly. They are an economic and ecological method that offers great satisfaction and raises awareness of the dangers of water accumulations.

All the systems mentioned can be purchased in the larvicide fight section on the MosquitoShop.

Adulticidal fight

Adult control involves fighting mosquitoes in their adult stage. It is not an alternative fight method to the prevention of the larvae but complementary. The main method for carrying out audicidal control are disinfestations with chemical products. These particular interventions, although their abuse is deprecated, are particularly useful when the presence of mosquitoes exceeds a certain warning level. In this way it is possible to bring the infestation back to an acceptable level and successfully continue the containment with the prevention methods.

In particular, the fight against adult mosquitoes can be carried out with the following means:

Mosquito traps: Mosquito traps and in particular those with carbon dioxide emissions (Mosquito Magnet) are a form of fight against adults but also a valid method of prevention. In contrast to disinfestations, which act indiscriminately, mosquito traps attract and capture fertile mosquitoes in a targeted manner in search of a blood meal. Thanks to this procedure they are able to interrupt the life cycle of insects. It is a form of prevention that acts on adult mosquito specimens.

Pest control: Pampas knapsack and insecticide are the best known and most contested methods of bringing infestations back to an acceptable level. The limitations of this method are that, in addition to introducing chemicals into the environment, they only affect mosquitoes in circulation. They must be weighted according to the time of day, the weather forecast and the species of mosquitoes present. If you do not carry out the disinfestations with criteria, they risk being ineffective. They are useless if not associated with a good prevention activity.

Insecticides: All the products useful for eliminating adult mosquitoes are an arrow in the audlticidal fight. These products are typically insecticides available in the most diverse forms: pellets, automatic sprays, candles, etc. In "portable" formats they are used to defend a patio, a terrace or even just to hang clothes in the garden or work in the vegetable garden.

Predators: Introducing the natural predators of mosquitoes into the environment is a highly publicized practice, particularly with regard tobats. It is a method for which there are no guarantees of results but it is definitely worth pursuing in certain specific contexts.

Everything and more can be found in the respective categories of the MosquitoShop: insecticides and mosquito traps.

Information

Informing people of the normal practices aimed at limiting, or at least not facilitating, the proliferation of mosquitoes is a fundamental pillar of the war against mosquitoes. Particularly in residential contexts, where the gardens are numerous and a few meters from each other, a collective effort is needed to reduce the presence of mosquitoes in as large an area as possible. It is useless to disinfest your own garden if crowds of ravenous tiger mosquitoes are raised next to it. For this reason, informing and spreading the anti-mosquito culture in the neighborhood and among the neighbors is a very important phase of the war.

Not only that, avoiding the proliferation of mosquitoes as well as being a civil behavior practice like doing separate waste collection, is a legal obligation imposed by almost all municipalities through specific ordinances.

To make this task easier, you can download an easily printable and editable flyer to distribute in mailboxes in your neighborhood: anti-mosquito propaganda.

Fighting mosquitoes may seem like a futile effort but with a little perseverance you won't have to wait long to see the first results which will be more and more evident from year to year. Defeating mosquitoes is possible and it starts right from your garden.