Mosquito control

Mosquito control manages the population of <a href="/facts/Mosquito/u8hTMTfc">mosquitoes</a> to reduce their damage to human health, economies, and enjoyment. Control strategies range from habitat modification and chemical insecticides to biological agents and mechanical traps. <a href="/facts/Climate_change/rEN4BDE7">Climate change</a>, <a href="/facts/Artificial_intelligence_(AI)/lJGauQwX">artificial intelligence (AI)</a>, and community participation are increasingly shaping mosquito management today. Rising global temperatures have expanded mosquito habitats and disease risks, prompting new surveillance tools such as AI-enabled robots and community-led education programs to play key roles in reducing breeding grounds and tracking mosquito populations.
Mosquito-control operations are targeted to multiple problems:

<ul><li>Nuisance mosquitoes bother people around homes or in parks and recreational areas;</li>
<li>Economically important mosquitoes reduce <a href="/facts/Real_estate/fngFAqrR">real estate</a> values, adversely affect <a href="/facts/Tourism/x47vNhHj">tourism</a> and related business interests, or negatively impact <a href="/facts/Livestock/Quhv6GvP">livestock</a> or <a href="/facts/Poultry/u8hUQ64j">poultry</a> production;</li>
<li>Public health is the focus when mosquitoes are <a href="/facts/Vector_(epidemiology)/bepASE2M">vectors</a>, or transmitters, of infectious <a href="/facts/Disease/55eeQlGL">disease</a>.</li>
<li>Mosquito-borne diseases can threaten <a href="/facts/Endangered_species/L7cIweSW">endangered species</a>.</li></ul>
Disease organisms transmitted by mosquitoes include <a href="/facts/West_Nile_virus/BU0j4uux">West Nile virus</a>, <a href="/facts/St._Louis_Encephalitis/XYqQRzv8">Saint Louis encephalitis virus</a>, <a href="/facts/Eastern_equine_encephalomyelitis_virus/YWjqvstS">Eastern equine encephalomyelitis virus</a>, <a href="/facts/Everglades_virus/bk7MSn21">Everglades virus</a>, <a href="/facts/Highlands_J_virus/qJvS2wzf">Highlands J virus</a>, <a href="/facts/La_Crosse_Encephalitis/UoXP1q5l">La Crosse Encephalitis</a> virus in the United States; <a href="/facts/Dengue_fever/Stn1FvlF">dengue fever</a>, <a href="/facts/Yellow_fever/feT3DIKu">yellow fever</a>, Ilheus virus, <a href="/facts/Malaria/rN3g58CX">malaria</a>, <a href="/facts/Zika_virus/qutGSNfM">Zika virus</a> and <a href="/facts/Filariasis/8AkVK5hy">filariasis</a> in the <a href="/facts/Neotropics/CHrCzFbK">American tropics</a>; <a href="/facts/Rift_Valley_fever/VTVX3NrI">Rift Valley fever</a>, <a href="/facts/Wuchereria_bancrofti/lyjnk9Fr">Wuchereria bancrofti</a>, <a href="/facts/Japanese_encephalitis/dXjMSu8z">Japanese encephalitis</a>, <a href="/facts/Chikungunya/KAzqWwpx">chikungunya</a> and filariasis in Africa and Asia; and <a href="/facts/Murray_Valley_encephalitis/8WoAXbtv">Murray Valley encephalitis</a> and Ross River fever in Australia. <a href="/facts/Vertical_transmission/5KmmumIw">Vertical transmission</a> from adult mosquitos to larvae is possible.
Depending on the situation, source reduction, biocontrol, <a href="/facts/Larvicide/dlhj8wkN">larviciding</a> (killing of <a href="/facts/Larva/GKo2FIew">larvae</a>), or adulticiding (killing of adults) may be used to manage mosquito populations. These techniques are accomplished using habitat modification, <a href="/facts/Pesticide/Uhf4KnwJ">pesticide</a>, biological-control agents, and trapping. The advantage of non-toxic methods of control is they can be used in <a href="/facts/Conservation_Area/c4oaz4En">Conservation Areas</a>.
<a href="/facts/Integrated_pest_management/XWCwBShW">Integrated pest management</a> (IPM) is the use of the most environmentally appropriate method or combination of methods to control pest populations. Typical mosquito-control programs using IPM first conduct surveys, in order to determine the <a href="/facts/Species_richness/xb1W1j65">species composition</a>, relative abundance and seasonal distribution of adult and larval mosquitoes, and only then is a control strategy defined.

Mosquito control open-in-new

Mosquito control