By treating larvae rather than breeding sites, pest managers can tackle mosquito problems before they emerge.
As part of any mosquito management program, customers are always advised to focus on eliminating mosquito breeding sites. However, this is not always possible or practical. In such situations, Culithor opens up a new growth opportunity for pest managers by targeting mosquito larvae.
Treating the water bodies where mosquitoes breed, is a common component of government mosquito control programs. The same technique can be used by professionals to target commercial customers.
“Culithor offers pest managers the ability to provide long term mosquito management programs to hotels, resorts, body corporates, businesses and other contracts where water features abound, or where flooding of areas occurs,” commented Paul Greig, Ensystex area manager for Brisbane and North Queensland.
“These water bodies provide ideal breeding grounds for mosquitoes, but they can be dealt with very simply by using Culithor.
Culithor offers longer-term prevention of adult mosquito emergence than any other available option. It can even be added to dry areas, where it is only activated once the area is flooded by heavy rains.
“The long-term mosquito control results from the deployment of the Ensystex ‘Intelligent granular microencapsulation technology’ which provides controlled, long-term release of the active constituent, (S)-methoprene.
“A grain of sand is coated with a layer of carbon and gypsum containing Ensystex ‘Controlled release active micro-capsules’ (CRAM-capsules). These tiny CRAM-capsules are 5.5μm in diameter and consist of a natural chitosan shell with a liquid core of the active ingredient.
“Culithor is activated by water and remains viable for up to three months, even in strong sunlight. In water, the Culithor granules sink to the bottom, weighed down by their inner, high mass core (sand). The outer gypsum layer then slowly dissolves, gradually releasing the CRAM-capsules.
“The CRAM-capsules take several days to slowly float to the surface, slowly liberating active en route. This ensures a more even delivery of the (S)-methoprene throughout the water, to give improved long-term control of the mosquito larvae.
“Since release of the active starts as soon as the CRAM-capsules are released from the gypsum, Culithor targets both surface-feeding and bottom-feeding species.
“Culithor works by mimicking the presence of natural juvenile hormone in the mosquito larvae. Treated larvae continue to develop normally to the pupal stage, after which they fail to emerge as adults.
“When applied at the recommended rates there is sufficient activity to be effective against existing broods. Culithor acts on all the key mosquitoes, including common Aedes, Anopheles, Culex and Ochlerotatus spp.”
Mosquito management is all about managing the environment and utilising a range of strategies to implement a successful mosquito control program.
“With Culithor targeting the larval stage, the use of Bithor Dual Action to create the Bithor ‘Mosquito Protection Zone’ around buildings targets the adult mosquitoes. Bithor will control pyrethroid resistant mosquitoes, and gives up to 6-8 weeks control of adult mosquitoes,” concluded Mr Greig.
