Reduction of mosquito biting-pressure: spatial repellents or mosquito traps? A field comparison of seven commercially available products in Israel.

The present study assessed the personal protection efficiency of seven commercially available mosquito control devices (MCD) under field conditions in Israel. Trials were performed in a high biting-pressure area inhabited by large populations of mosquito and biting midge species, using human volunteers as bait in landing catch experiments. Results show that under minimal air-movement, three spatial repellent based products (ThermaCELL(®) Patio Lantern, OFF!(®) PowerPad lamp, and Terminix(®) ALLCLEAR Tabletop Mosquito Repeller) significantly reduced the biting-pressure (t-test - P<0.01) when positioned at short distances from a volunteer (3, 7.5, and 10ft.), with the ThermaCELL unit being most effective (96.1, 89.9, and 76.66% reduction, respectively). No significant differences were seen between the three aforementioned devices at distances of 3 and 7.5ft., while at a distance of 10ft., only the ThermaCELL patio lantern repelled significantly more mosquitoes then the Terminix ALLCLEAR Tabletop Mosquito Repeller (t-test, P<0.05). In contrast, mosquito traps using attracting cues to bait mosquitoes (Dynatrap(®), Vortex(®) Electronic Insect Trap, Blue Rhino(®) SV3100) either significantly increased or had no effect on the biting-pressure at short distances compared with the unprotected control. Trials conducted over large areas showed that only the Blue Rhino trap was able to significantly reduce the biting-pressure (40.1% reduction), but this was only when operating four units at the corners of an intermediate sized area.

Evaluation of commercial products for personal protection against mosquitoes.

Human landing catch studies were conducted in a semi-field setting to determine the efficacy of seven commercial products used for personal protection against mosquitoes. Experiments were conducted in two empty, insecticide free, mesh-enclosed greenhouses, in Israel, with either 1500 Aedes albopictus or 1500 Culex pipiens released on consecutive study nights. The products tested in this study were the OFF!(®) Clip-On™ Mosquito Repellent (Metofluthrin 31.2%) and the Terminix(®) ALLCLEAR(®) Sidekick Mosquito Repeller (Cinnamon oil 10.5%; Eugenol 13%; Geranium oil 21%; Peppermint 5.3%; Lemongrass oil 2.6%), which are personal diffusers; Super Band™ Wristband (22% Citronella oil) and the PIC(®) Citronella Plus Wristband (Geraniol 15%; Lemongrass oil 5%, Citronella oil 1%); the Sonic Insect Repeller Keychain; the Mosquito Guard Patch (Oil of Lemon Eucalyptus 80mg), an adhesive-backed sticker for use on textiles; and the Mosquito Patch (vitamin B1 300mg), a transdermal patch. It was determined that the sticker, transdermal patch, wristbands and sonic device did not provide significant protection to volunteers compared with the mosquito attack rate on control volunteers who were not wearing a repellent device. The personal diffusers: - OFF!(®) Clip-On™ and Terminix(®) ALLCLEAR(®) Sidekick - provided superior protection compared with all other devices in this study. These diffusers reduced biting on the arms of volunteers by 96.28% and 95.26% respectively, for Ae. albopictus, and by 94.94% and 92.15% respectively, for Cx. pipiens. In a second trial conducted to compare these devices directly, biting was reduced by the OFF!(®) Clip-On™ and the Terminix(®) ALLCLEAR(®) by 87.55% and 92.83%, respectively, for Ae. albopictus, and by 97.22% and 94.14%, respectively, for Cx. pipiens. There was no significant difference between the performances of the two diffusers for each species.