Dr. Stan Cope, VP, Technical Products and Services, Catchmaster, and Past President, American Mosquito Control Association
All of the 3,000 or so species of mosquitoes in the world require water for their life cycle, but the breeding sites are not always obvious or easy to find. Examples of cryptic breeding sites include:
- Clogged gutters. Some customers have full botanical gardens growing there! Consider offering gutter cleaning as part of your mosquito service.
- Tree holes. These form when a branch breaks off and part of the tree rots. They can hold a substantial amount of water, and several kinds of mosquitoes will breed in them.
- In-ground drains. Treat with larvicide, or cover them with hardware cloth to prevent access by egg-laying females.
- Water-holding plants. This is particularly problematic in commercial accounts such as zoos, botanical gardens, golf courses, resorts, etc.
- Corrugated plastic tubes. Often connected to downspouts to pull water away from foundations, the ends of these things almost always tip up, collect water, and breed mosquitoes.
- Leaf piles. Larger leaves within the pile can hold enough water for mosquito breeding.
- Undisturbed rodent bait boxes. Mosquitoes love places that are a bit cooler, moist, dark and out of the wind.
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