A lethal ovitrap is a device which attracts gravid female container-breeding mosquitoes and kills them. The traps halt the insect's life cycle by killing adult insects and stopping reproduction. The original use of ovitraps was to monitor the spread and density of Aedes and other container-breeding mosquito populations by collecting eggs which could be counted, or hatched to identify the types of insects. Since its conception, researchers found that adding lethal substances to the ovitraps could control the populations of these targeted species. These traps are called lethal ovitraps. They primarily target Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus mosquitoes, which are the main vectors of dengue fever, Zika virus, west Nile virus, yellow fever, and chikungunya. Lethal ovitraps can either contain substances that kills larvae that hatch from eggs laid in the traps (larvicidal ovitraps), or substances that kill the adult mosquito when she enters, along with any larva that may hatch (adulticidal ovitraps). While larvicidal ovitraps only reduce larval growth, they do not kill the adult mosquitoes that may carry diseases. Adulticidal ovitraps act to kill the viremic (disease-carrying) female mosquitoes and act to directly stop disease transmission. Lethal ovitraps use tiny amounts of pesticides, usually 99.9% less chemicals than applied using traditional spraying or “fogging”. They provide isolated spaces where mosquitoes, not humans and other wildlife, will find these pesticides, instead of broadcasting them into the environment. Harsher pesticides with less mosquito resistance can be used in these traps because the spaces are so isolated. This allows for better mosquito control with less pesticide use.
How it works These dark, water-filled containers mimic the breeding site of container-breeding mosquitoes including the Aedes species. They prefer to lay their eggs in small human-made containers that hold standing water including rain buckets, flower pots, old tires, gutters, the leaf axils of plants, and even discarded bottles, cans, and other trash. These mosquitoes may visit on average 12 or more sites per egg-laying cycle in an act called "skip-oviposition". This ensures as many eggs as possible will survive if the breeding sites are damaged or dried up. Because these mosquitoes jump from breeding site to breeding site, the chances that they will find an ovitrap are extremely high, almost certain if enough ovitraps are placed around natural breeding sites.
Lethal ovitraps in the United States In the 1990s, U.S. military research scientists Michael Perich of the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research and Brian Zeichner of the U.S. Army Center for Health Promotion and Preventive Medicine, now called the U.S. Army Public Health Center, developed the Lethal Mosquito Breeding Container. The U.S. Army patented the Lethal Mosquito Breeding Container in 1999; the patent expired in 2017. In 2008, the US Army licensed the technology to SpringStar Inc., a manufacturing company located in Washington. SpringStar® then registered the product under the brand name of Trap-N-Kill®, which is for sale in some states in the US. Another lethal ovitrap available in the United States is the BG-GAT from the company Biogents. This trap type was developed by mosquito scientists from the Federal University of Minas Gerais in Brasil and the James Cook University in Australia. This trap type has recently been successfully used to reduce Asian tiger mosquito biting pressure in a neighborhood project in University Park, MD, which was supervised by scientists from Rutgers University.
Applications of Copper in Ovitraps Ovitraps are used in mosquito control campaigns to target the larval stage of mosquitoes. The application of copper-based ovitraps offers a cost-effective alternative to traditional larvicides, particularly in resource-limited settings. Copper, known for its larvicidal properties, has been tested in field settings to determine its effectiveness and practicality for mosquito control.
… excerpt ends here. Continue reading the full article.
