A: UGA Entomologist and Public Health Specialist Elmer Gray joined me in-studio at the end of May, and we had a great conversation about mosquitoes.
He says mosquito prevention requires diligence and hard work. “While there are no known silver bullets to mosquito prevention and control, I stand by the approach of eliminating all forms of standing water on your property. Talk with your neighbors or community members about eliminating mosquito habitats. Treat water that cannot be eliminated that has mosquito larvae with EPA approved larvicides, such as Bti dunks.”
Elmer brought with him to the studio a great list of EPA approved repellents.
-DEET he says is still the gold standard. It is very safe.
-Oil of lemon eucalyptus
-Catnip oil
-Oil of citronella
These plant-based repellents work well in conjunction with proper attire. When you’re spending a lot of time outside in the summer, Elmer says to wear loose-fitting, light colored clothing. And he applauded the effectiveness of spatial repellents and emanators, like Thermacell. If you don’t have these, something like a box fan that creates strong air movement works well too.
When Elmer was on the show about two years ago, we busted some myths together. Read more about those here.