Has anyone tried these new ultrasonic mosquito repellants? Do they work, and if so, how do they hold up around salt water? -- Your favorite stores, helpful shopping tools and great gift ideas. Experience the convenience of buying online with Shop_at_Netscape! http://shopnow.netscape.com/ *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
Richard wrote >Has anyone tried these new ultrasonic mosquito repellants? Do they >work, and if so, how do they hold up around salt water? -- G'Day, My vitriolic hatred of mossies led me to invest in such a device, against my better judgement. Yet another investment down the drain, at least as far as Ozzie mozzies are cerned:~( Much sympathy and all the best, PeterO (Australia) *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
The vibrator is supposed to mimic the vibrations of a dragon fly's wings. A mosquito's natural enemy. Here in Florida they are called mosquito hawks. The concept may work if the mosquitoes have adapted to an aversion to those specific vibrations. cu *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
Bob Denton said: The vibrator is supposed to mimic the vibrations of a dragon fly's wings. A mosquito's natural enemy. Here in Florida they are called mosquito hawks. The concept may work if the mosquitoes have adapted to an aversion to those specific vibrations. Question: How does the mosquito evolve to have the behavior of avoiding a sound that precedes their death? I believe that mosquitos do not communicate information to each other, along the lines of "And another thing, kiddies, if you hear a buzzing sound - duck!" So the behavior would have to evolve by increased survival of mosquitos who recognized the sound as indicating danger, avoided the danger, and lived to reproduce. I'm not saying it couldn't happen, but is there someone more familiar with evolution than this old anthropology major who does know? Jim Tibensky *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
Similar to the process of developing resistance to pesticides. Thus, if a particular pesticide is not used in a certain area, there would be no innate resistance. One would assume that there would be some form of selection against natural predators. At times in the Everglades the air is thick with dragon flies. I assume that Florida mosquitoes may be more attune to the specific frequencies that other parts of the country where there are fewer dragon flies. In addition, I have no idea IF there is a specific frequency for their wing beats. Personally, I wouldn't spend a dime on one of these, unless I could use the battery for something. Cya *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
Question: How does the mosquito evolve to have the behavior of avoiding a sound that precedes their death? I believe that mosquitos do not communicate information to each other, along the lines of "And another thing, kiddies, if you hear a buzzing sound - duck!" So the behavior would have to evolve by increased survival of mosquitos who recognized the sound as indicating danger, avoided the danger, and lived to reproduce. I'm not saying it couldn't happen, but is there someone more familiar with evolution than this old anthropology major who does know? Jim Tibensky Jim and everyone, I'm somewhat of a lurker on this forum, this is my first post, and although I've paddled extensively in wilderness areas, I don't consider myself an expert canoer...more of an experienced wilderness camper that uses a canoe to get around...but I've certainly enjoyed the discussions. Anyway, maybe I can contribute a bit of info here, or at least a smile... I cannot vouch for what mosquitoes can and cannot hear, but I can offer a possible semi-answer to Jim's question that at least some insects do detect certain frequencies including those of potential predators and that there appears to be an instinctive avoidance reaction. For instance, some species of moths react to the echolocation frequencies used by bats, one of their primary predators, by folding their wings and dropping into grass or shrubbery where the bats refuse to go. Bats can get a hard return off moths from a distance of about 10-15 feet or so, but moths can detect the bats' echolocation clicks at considerably greater distances, so their avoidance behavior works quite well. To illustrate, one evening my newly-wedded wife was unsuccessfully chasing a moth through the house, but she couldn't catch it. I, being a naturalist and knowing such inherently usable tidbits, such as facets of moth behavior, slyly pulled a set of keys from my pocket and jingled them gently while commanding the moth to immediately land. The moth, detecting the frequencies of an echolocating bat among the wide range of frequencies emanating from the jingling keys, folded its wings and fell onto the carpet, whereupon I simply reached down and picked it up, much to the amazement of my wife! I have since been her hero and she has been my best canoeing buddy...grin. Not all species of moths use this defense, but certainly several do. As to mosquitoes, we simply bear their existence when they are infrequent, use a bit of Skin-so-Soft or citronella based repellant when they are a bit more common, or DEET when they are swarming. A friend used a $9.00 frequency generator repeller on a trip to the Boundary Waters, but we could have sold him a bottle of Cutters for $20 the first night. Gordon Dietzman *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
Quoting Richard Magill <rmagill9_at_netscape.net>: > Has anyone tried these new ultrasonic mosquito repellants? Do they > work, and if so, how do they hold up around salt water? > -- Everything I've heard says they don't work. DEET is the only tried and true mosquito repellant, though I read somewhere that there might be a new repellant under development that is almost as good. Sorry, I can't remember the name of the chemical, but I think a search on Google might produce several good hits. Chuck Holst *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
We have just developed an all natural mosquito repellent which has recently been tested in Northern Minnesota and the Mangroves and appears to out perform Deet. Mosquitoes follow the CO2 plume exhaled by all mammals, then use the octinol scent exuded by mammalian skin to find a blood source. Repellents don't repel, but simply mask. One problem in testing repellents, is that each species of mosquito responds differently to "repellents" but only one species can be bred in the lab for testing purposes..Ades Egypti. It's one of the vectors for malaria and yellow fever, so it makes for a viable study, but other repellents have been shown to be up to 10 times more effective against other species in South East Asia. Our bug lab suggested the best test for our product would be field trials under actual conditions. Cya! Bob Denton www.soytek.com >>>Everything I've heard says they don't work. DEET is the only tried and true mosquito repellant, *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
I know people who've had severe reactions to DEET and I for one hate getting into my sleeping bag covered in any chemical. So a few years ago I switched to using a bug shirt. I have one from The Original Bug Shirt Company (http://www.bugshirt.com/) which is, I believe, far better than any I've seen. There is nothing nicer for avoiding *all* bugs. The quality is great and the egyptian cotton portions are cool in the summer. Bring a pair of light cotton gardening gloves and you've got total protection. A few weeks ago a group of five of us were in Voyageurs National Park (home of one or two mosquito's and black flies) and we all had bug shirts on. We looked like a outdoors loving cult. I am going to Vietnam and Cambodia for a month this coming January and I'll definately be bring the bug shirt. -Patrick On Tue, 22 Jul 2003 08:40:07 -0500, cholst wrote > Everything I've heard says they don't work. DEET is the only tried > and true mosquito repellant, though I read somewhere that there > might be a new repellant under development that is almost as good. > Sorry, I can't remember the name of the chemical, but I think a > search on Google might produce several good hits. > > Chuck Holst *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
----- Original Message ----- Everything I've heard says they don't work. DEET is the only tried and true mosquito repellant, though I read somewhere that there might be a new repellant under development that is almost as good. Sorry, I can't remember the name of the chemical, but I think a search on Google might produce several good hits. Chuck Holst *************************************************************************** Since my wife and I are travelling to a Malaria and Yellow Fever area next month, I've been doing some research about preventing mosquito bites. The CDC recoomends that repellent containing DEET be applied to all exposed skin areas. Steve Holtzman Southern, CA *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
We've had some success in this area with surplus Phalanx close-in weapons systems (a 20mm radar-controlled gatling doodad). Although some of the skeeters have been resistant to individual rounds, the impact usually knocks them into someone else's back yard. <Rick.Sylvia_at_ferguson.com> wrote: >Similar to duck hunting, we'll take a few male mosquitoes down with >some buckshot and have the dogs retrieve them. Once we get them home, >we'll tie some rope to their legs and hang them upside down from the >trees. When the other mosquitoes see that carnage, they usually move >on. Tommy McGuire *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.4.0 : Thu Aug 21 2025 - 16:33:34 PDT