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The Tangipahoa Mosquito Abatement District periodically receives various forms
of requests, by Tangipahoa residents, including emails, telephone calls and other
communique. Some of these requests include questions about various types of methods
for eliminating pesky mosquitoes.
The Mosquito Myth Busters is a mechanism that we use to help prove and/or
disprove some myths that we receive from our constituents.
Listerine as a pesticide myth - May 25, 2011
The
Claim - received via email:
How to Kill Mosquitoes - NOT A JOKE
You
may be aware of this, How to Kill Mosquitoes - NOT A JOKE
I can't
wait to try this in the summer!
I was at a deck party awhile
back, and the bugs were having a ball biting everyone. A man
at the party sprayed the lawn and deck floor with Listerine, and the
little demons disappeared. The next year I filled a 4-ounce
spray bottle and used it around my seat whenever I saw mosquitoes.
And viola! That worked as well. It worked at a picnic
where we sprayed the area around the food table, the children's
swing area, and the standing water nearby. During the summer,
I don't leave home without it....Pass it on.
OUR FRIENDS'S
COMMENTS: I tried this on my deck and around all of my doors.
It works - in fact, it killed them instantly. I bought my
bottle and it cost me $1.89. It really doesn't take much, and
it is a big bottle, too; so it is not as expensive to use as the can
of Bug-spray you buy that doesn't last 30 minutes.
So, try
this, please. It will last a couple of days. Don't spray
directly on a wood door (like your front door), but spray around the
frame. Spray around the window frames, and even inside the dog
house.
Now these are Good Mosquitoes!!! EARTH FRIENDLY
TOO???
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The Stage:
. Mosquito cage
. Listerine
bottle
. Spray bottle |
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| ...several hundred Quinks... |
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The Experiment:
Hypothesis:
Listerine serves as an alternative and effective pesticide for mosquitoes.
Materials and Methods:
For this experiment, quink larvae were collected from within the district and reared in an insectory under warm, moist conditions. The mosquitoes were fed liver powder as larvae and diluted sugar water as adults. After about one week, there were sufficient numbers to conduct the experiment. A blank sheet of paper was placed in the bottom of the cage in order
to more effectively see any mortality.
Results:
The first test consisted of one spray of Listerine. No mortality was noted after the elapsed time of five minutes. The second test consisted of two sprays. Though there were some “knocked down” initially, there was again no mortality after five minutes. The third test consisted of 4 sprays, with no mortality, though there was another initial knockdown. The final test, or the “saturation test” included 20 sprays. Though there was a large initial knockdown, there was no mortality after five minutes. The next day the mosquitoes were observed, and there was no mortality noted during that period as well.
Conclusion:
Listerine is an ineffective pesticide to use against mosquitoes. While it may seem to kill them initially, those mosquitoes have a high probability of recovering. The initial knockdown is most likely due to the mosquitoes getting wet from the direct spray. Once the wings dry, they may recover and resume flight.
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