In contrast to repellents, mosquito traps base their protection on attracting mosquitoes instead of repelling them. Most trappers are pleased to watch how many mosquitoes they catched but overlook the number of mosquitoes that were attracted but managed to escape…
Furthermore, we humans will always be more attractive to mosquitoes than any mosquito trap, as they have evolved to detect and be attracted mainly to us! As good as mosquito traps will be, they will never be more than a mimic of us… For this reason, many entomologists reject the idea of using mosquito traps (and other nuisance insects trapping) as a mean to locally reduce mosquito population.
Nevertheless, mosquito traps can be quite useful as a complementary measure together with a more efficient local control method. For example, use of mosquito repellents in the target area and a mosquito trap somewhat far-off, as an attractant away from the target area.
The most common mosquito trap is a light trap, based on the fact that Nocturnal (night active) insects are attracted to light. Many mosquito traps are using ultraviolet light as it can be detected by insects, but does not disturb our darkness. These mosquito traps are almost useless for day-biting mosquitoes like the Asian tiger mosquito. Furthermore, they will normally kill other nocturnal insects like many species of moth, more efficiently than the mosquitoes themselves. Such light traps for home use are normally surrounded with an electric coil to zap the insects to death.
Carbon-dioxide (CO2) is a major attractant for the biting mosquito females, a fact that did not elude mosquito trap designers. With the addition of dry-ice, CO2 gas tank or a device that generates CO2, such advanced light traps will increase the catch of mosquitoes, sometimes even 100 times more. Some mosquito traps with CO2 generation even skip the usage of light completely.
The optimal CO2 concentration around a mosquito trap should be similar to the concentration of CO2 around a breathing person. The more sophisticated mosquito traps also mimic our body temperature, generating temperature of 37ºc (99ºf) around the trapping point. Modern mosquito traps even add additional odors that attract mosquito females, in their search for making the mosquito trap even more attractive. Such odors can be of lactic acid and even human sweat…
We focused here on mosquito traps for the adult biting mosquitoes. Other kinds are aimed to attract the mosquito females when searching for a place to oviposit (lay eggs). Since the mosquito oviposits only after getting her blood meal (i.e. biting us), the oviposition mosquito traps are of no real interest to the private consumer and are used mainly by researchers or as part of a large mosquito control campaigns.
To summarize, the best domestic mosquito traps should include as many attractants as possible and should be located only in the surrounding area. Such a trap will be fairly effective as it will attract and catch as many mosquitoes as possible away from us. Putting the mosquito trap too close to us can actually have negative impact, since it will summon mosquitoes to our vicinity that had no intention to be there in the first place…
Furthermore, we humans will always be more attractive to mosquitoes than any mosquito trap, as they have evolved to detect and be attracted mainly to us! As good as mosquito traps will be, they will never be more than a mimic of us… For this reason, many entomologists reject the idea of using mosquito traps (and other nuisance insects trapping) as a mean to locally reduce mosquito population.
Nevertheless, mosquito traps can be quite useful as a complementary measure together with a more efficient local control method. For example, use of mosquito repellents in the target area and a mosquito trap somewhat far-off, as an attractant away from the target area.
The most common mosquito trap is a light trap, based on the fact that Nocturnal (night active) insects are attracted to light. Many mosquito traps are using ultraviolet light as it can be detected by insects, but does not disturb our darkness. These mosquito traps are almost useless for day-biting mosquitoes like the Asian tiger mosquito. Furthermore, they will normally kill other nocturnal insects like many species of moth, more efficiently than the mosquitoes themselves. Such light traps for home use are normally surrounded with an electric coil to zap the insects to death.
Carbon-dioxide (CO2) is a major attractant for the biting mosquito females, a fact that did not elude mosquito trap designers. With the addition of dry-ice, CO2 gas tank or a device that generates CO2, such advanced light traps will increase the catch of mosquitoes, sometimes even 100 times more. Some mosquito traps with CO2 generation even skip the usage of light completely.
The optimal CO2 concentration around a mosquito trap should be similar to the concentration of CO2 around a breathing person. The more sophisticated mosquito traps also mimic our body temperature, generating temperature of 37ºc (99ºf) around the trapping point. Modern mosquito traps even add additional odors that attract mosquito females, in their search for making the mosquito trap even more attractive. Such odors can be of lactic acid and even human sweat…
We focused here on mosquito traps for the adult biting mosquitoes. Other kinds are aimed to attract the mosquito females when searching for a place to oviposit (lay eggs). Since the mosquito oviposits only after getting her blood meal (i.e. biting us), the oviposition mosquito traps are of no real interest to the private consumer and are used mainly by researchers or as part of a large mosquito control campaigns.
To summarize, the best domestic mosquito traps should include as many attractants as possible and should be located only in the surrounding area. Such a trap will be fairly effective as it will attract and catch as many mosquitoes as possible away from us. Putting the mosquito trap too close to us can actually have negative impact, since it will summon mosquitoes to our vicinity that had no intention to be there in the first place…
Mosquito Traps
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