Mosquito fruits??

[sapote]

Since the common apples have a deep large dimple at the stem, I would think it  is a place that mosquitoes can breed. No?

Sorry it is not tropical fruit but people here are good at most fruits.

[arc310]

probably. anything that can hold some water and they'll breed. been in invasion of mosquitoes in the SGV area for the past 2 years. gone are the days of just going out in shorts and tshirt and not get bit.

the most vicious are the tiger mosquitoes. those SOB follow you into the house whenever they can and bite all day long.

[fruitlovers]

Depends on the type of mosquitoes in your area? Most would need a much bigger pool than that to breed. But some types, like the Asian tiger striped mosquitoes can breed in very tiny pools of water.

[marklee]

Also check any pineapples (Bromeliads), the recently introduced to southern California Aedes egypti aka Asian Tiger Mosquito will breed easy in those, even when the water dries out the eggs will hatch when rehydrated.

[sapote]

Wow, this means Simon cannot grow his favorite white pineapple any more I can't reason why God created apples with the dimple!!!

[barath]

Also check any pineapples (Bromeliads), the recently introduced to southern California Aedes egypti aka Asian Tiger Mosquito will breed easy in those, even when the water dries out the eggs will hatch when rehydrated.

Wow...that's no good.  So should container pineapples be bottom watered to avoid this problem?  Or is even dew enough for them to breed?

[marklee]

Just flush them out with water at least weekly to break the breeding cycle.

[fruitlovers]

This is a problem with all bromeliads. Pineapples are a type of bromeliad. The types of bromeliads that hold a lot of water are much bigger problem than pineapples for breeding mosquitoes.

[sapote]

On the mosquitos subject and the costly programs to minimize them with spraying chemical, releasing neutered male mosquitos, etc., I would think the cheapest and effective method is to have each residence with an outdoor fish tank. The water will attack the insects and the fishes eat them and their kids. The cheapest, environmental friendly, and effective method. Why not?

[marklee]

On the mosquitos subject and the costly programs to minimize them with spraying chemical, releasing neutered male mosquitos, etc., I would think the cheapest and effective method is to have each residence with an outdoor fish tank. The water will attack the insects and the fishes eat them and their kids. The cheapest, environmental friendly, and effective method. Why not?

That only works with mosquito species that breed in unmanaged swimming pools, artificial fish ponds or other basins that have enough water to sustain the fish. The Asian Tiger mosquito breeds in smaller shallower receptacles like halfed coconut shells, and as Oscar mentioned regular bromeliads.

[sapote]

"The Asian Tiger mosquito breeds in smaller shallower receptacles like halfed coconut shells, and as Oscar mentioned regular bromeliads."

You meant those Tigers are so smart that they will avoid fish tank and dirty pool for holed coconuts and bromeliads? I believe they will try to breed in any water bodies, and if there is a fish tank available 24/7 they will be shucked in slowly but steady. 

[arc310]

good excuse to tell the wife we need a pond now. 

had someone come out from https://www.sgvmosquito.org/ last year and she was telling me they tried to see what would kill the eggs and they even hatched in bleach. 

dead leaves that curl up near sprinklers? they'll hatch from there too. i've seen some DIY traps that uses brown sugar and yeast...might try that.

[fruitlovers]

"The Asian Tiger mosquito breeds in smaller shallower receptacles like halfed coconut shells, and as Oscar mentioned regular bromeliads."

You meant those Tigers are so smart that they will avoid fish tank and dirty pool for holed coconuts and bromeliads? I believe they will try to breed in any water bodies, and if there is a fish tank available 24/7 they will be shucked in slowly but steady.

Yes the Asian tiger mosquito will breed in large pools, but also in tiny collections of water. So your idea would reduce the numbers but not entirely eliminate them.

[greenman62]

I hate that insect with a passion.

 When i went to the Peruvian Amazon, i got malaria
(my suitcase with the meds i was suppose to take went to Quito Ecuador
instead of Iquitos Peru... along with cameras, cloths etc...)

Anyway, i got malaria while there.
i got back to the states and went to a doctor
and they took blood and told me i did NOT have Malaria.
I told them i was getting headaches and told them my other sytmpoms
I specifically told them my symptoms WERE that of malaria.
they swore i did not have malaria.

about 10 days later i went to the emergency room
and told the ER doc the story, he had them run the tests again
and i got a call from the first doc saying they made a mistake.
i almost died.
After, i went to the CDC to get treated.

[FrankDrebinOfFruits]

http://homeguides.sfgate.com/native-american-mosquito-repellent-76112.html

I know it's not fancy... and its probably not something the average user will do, but I do this quite frequently in the field.

Mud
Although it may not seem fancy, mysterious or something a medicine man might whip up, mud provided American Indians protection from mosquitoes when they applied it to their exposed skin. A thick layer of mud is seemingly less attractive to mosquitoes than plain old skin, potentially masking some of the aroma that attracts mosquitoes in the first place.

I will say it works quite well, its cheap, natural, and no odor (which is important when hunting). I plan to shower anyways when I come back in.  Sometimes I pretend I am Arnold in the movie predator...  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ktVqsBgOvBI

[sapote]

"The Asian Tiger mosquito breeds in smaller shallower receptacles like halfed coconut shells, and as Oscar mentioned regular bromeliads."

You meant those Tigers are so smart that they will avoid fish tank and dirty pool for holed coconuts and bromeliads? I believe they will try to breed in any water bodies, and if there is a fish tank available 24/7 they will be shucked in slowly but steady.

Yes the Asian tiger mosquito will breed in large pools, but also in tiny collections of water. So your idea would reduce the numbers but not entirely eliminate them.

Agreed, but so does other fancier expensive methods: chemical spay or releasing neutered male. The cheap simple fish tank running 24/7 is like a bypass oil filter in the old Porsche 912 or 356.

So do I expect to see each of us has a fish tank? I just bough a large share of pet fish stock yesterday

[fruitlovers]

"The Asian Tiger mosquito breeds in smaller shallower receptacles like halfed coconut shells, and as Oscar mentioned regular bromeliads."

You meant those Tigers are so smart that they will avoid fish tank and dirty pool for holed coconuts and bromeliads? I believe they will try to breed in any water bodies, and if there is a fish tank available 24/7 they will be shucked in slowly but steady.

Yes the Asian tiger mosquito will breed in large pools, but also in tiny collections of water. So your idea would reduce the numbers but not entirely eliminate them.

Agreed, but so does other fancier expensive methods: chemical spay or releasing neutered male. The cheap simple fish tank running 24/7 is like a bypass oil filter in the old Porsche 912 or 356.

So do I expect to see each of us has a fish tank? I just bough a large share of pet fish stock yesterday

If you are using barrels to catch rain water you can just add a few guppies to that for double duty as mosquito population reducers. I saw someone doing that and thought it was a good idea. Some day i would like to have a fish pond, but that's just another big project right now amongst many in the planning.
I don't have an outdoor tank. But i do use containers of water for my chickens, and empty them periodically, which also kills all the mosquito larvae. It helps, but there are still plenty of mosquitoes around. Best is to maintain vegetation free zones, or just lawn, around your house. If you plant bromeliads, or even bananas around your house, they easily breed in the water of fallen leaves. Also they like the shade created by any trees.

[marklee]

I was wrong with the name of the mosquito, the Asian Tiger Mosquito is Aedes albopictus, and the Aedes egypti is the Yellow Fever Mosquito. The females of both species only fly a few hundred meters in their lifetime in one area such as one property and feeding on the humans. Just check your property for breeding places.

[sapote]

"It helps, but there are still plenty of mosquitoes around."

Exactly!! The trouble is not everyone doing this. Most people rely on the government to take care this kind of epidermic. But really, if the governments around the world spend little money -- as compare to other methods -- to equip each household with a fish tank. Oh man, less mosquitoes and more science kids in the next generation.

"Oh Lord, won't you buy me a Fish Tank? (No Porsche and no Mosquitoes)"

[marklee]

The small breeding spots are the problem, as Oscar said they breed in leaves. They will breed in something as small as a bottle cap. When I visit Indonesia surfing the outer islands Aedes species are breeding in most of the coconut halves.