How not to be bugged by mosquitoes

Posted: Thursday, July 17, 2003

PHILADELPHIA - It takes a lot of patience to be a mosquito expert these days.

Not because of the skeeters. Although there are billions upon billions upon billions of them, including several flood-triggered species not seen that often in many parts of the country, nothing is really that out of the ordinary.

The challenge is the people. They just don't want to hear what the experts have to say.

"If the mosquitoes are out there," advises Wayne Crans, a director of mosquito research at Rutgers University, "go indoors. If you wait an hour, they'll go away."

Understanding a few bloodsucker basics can be helpful for getting rid of them:

All mosquitoes spend their formative days, from egg to larva to pupa, in standing water. Their preferred terrain - salt marsh, pond, kiddie pool - varies from species to species, as do their favorite weather conditions. But in every case, a fully developed adult emerges from the water after a week or so.

Adult mosquitoes fly. "Culex mosquitoes, those most implicated in the transmission of West Nile virus, stick around the house and rarely go more than a block.

Unlike, say, humans, mosquitoes value numbers over the individual. Kill 90 percent of a billion mosquitoes and they don't care; there will still be 100 million left to get you.

Here is some of what's out there, and what the experts say:

In the air

Reducing the number of mosquitoes buzzing around your property by killing them off is tough for the simple reason that others will fly in to take their place.

Heavily advertised ultrasonic devices or electronic repellers do virtually nothing to keep away mosquitoes, according to the Rutgers fact sheet.

Bug zappers have been popular for years, perhaps because sound effects prove they are working - moths pop and beetles sizzle.

Studies have shown that biting insects of all types make up less than 1 percent of insects electrocuted in zappers.

Citronella candles and burning coils will repel mosquitoes in a small area without wind. Rule of thumb: If you can't smell them, they're not close enough.

Most outdoor foggers labeled for consumers have only a temporary effect, say, for before a garden party.

On your body

Repellents for your skin or clothes do work, as long as they have the right ingredients. Many people just don't like the feel or the smell.

Scientists continue to find skin repellents containing DEET (N,N-diethyl-meta-toluamide) by far the most effective. Mosquitoes (and often ticks) don't like the smell and stay away for up to half a day.

In the water

Experts are unanimous: The best way to control mosquitoes is to prevent them from growing into adults in the first place.

Physically empty every "container" at least weekly, from rain gutters (Culex mosquitoes are partial to wet, rotting leaves) to birdbaths, holes in trees, old tires and air-conditioner puddles.

Use sump pumps for awkward containers such as swimming pool covers (chlorine and the filter will do the job in the pool itself) and holes in the ground.

Larvicides are safe and effective but must be constantly reapplied.

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