How to Build Your Own Mosquito Trap

Anyone who’s ever sat outside for a few hours, only to get up covered in itchy, red mosquito bites knows how frustrating these flying pests can be. Friends and relatives will tell you, “Oh, they’re just attracted to you because you’re so sweet!” but are mosquitoes really attracted to sweet things? And if so, could we use this attraction to construct mosquito traps that eliminate these pests entirely?

In reality, it’s not necessarily the “sweetness” of your blood that attracts mosquitoes - it’s often the carbon dioxide you’re exhaling that draws them in. However, mosquitoes can also be attracted to strong smells, like those found in perfumes, shampoos and body lotions. They may also be attracted to the smell of foods you’ve eaten - bananas, in particular, seem to have an attracting effect, while eating garlic acts like a natural repellent.

But if simply avoiding bananas and eating more garlic doesn’t seem to do the trick, why not build your own mosquito trap to help keep these buzzing bugs at bay? Here’s how to do it…

What You’ll Need:
Empty 2 liter soda bottle
Knife
2 cups of water
4 tablespoons of brown sugar
1 pinch of yeast
Black construction paper

Instructions:

Empty a two liter soda bottle and cut the top few inches off (cut right where the bottle begins to curve into the cylindrical bases). Set the top of the bottle aside, as you’ll need this in a later step.

Next, heat one cup of water on the stove until it’s nearly boiling. Mix in four tablespoons of brown sugar until they dissolve and then add the remaining water to bring the temperature of the mixture down. Once the mixture is cool enough to place in the bottle, mix in a pinch of yeast, which will generate the carbon dioxide that mimics human breathing, and pour the liquid into the bottom cylinder you created when you cut the top off the soda bottle.

Now, grab the top part of the bottle and invert it so that the narrow bottle neck is pointing down. Press the top part into the bottom cylinder with the liquid inside so that it forms a tight seal. The bottle neck shouldn’t touch the liquid in the base, but it should come close enough that any mosquitoes flying into the trap will drown in the liquid.

Finally, wrap your trap in black construction paper to help disguise it and lure in unsuspecting mosquitoes. Place your finished trap near standing water sources or near any other area with a heavy mosquito infestation. Be sure to check your trap at least every two weeks, as you’ll need to empty and replace the mixture to prevent mosquitoes from laying their eggs in it.

Congratulations - for a few dollars and just a little bit of effort, you’ve built a mosquito trap that you can reuse over and over again in your ongoing fight against these irritating invaders. Hopefully, when you go back to check your trap, you’ll find plenty of dead mosquitoes inside, leaving your lawn, garden and other outdoor spaces pest-free!

Diseases Transmitted by Mosquitoes

Being stung by a mosquito certainly isn’t fun - once stuck, you’re in for at least a few days of redness, itching and swelling. However, in some cases, being stung by mosquitoes isn’t just irritating. Because mosquitoes are known vectors that carry several different infectious diseases, they can be dangerous as well!

In this article, let’s take a look at some of the different diseases that are transmitted by mosquitoes, where these infections are most likely to occur and how you can protect yourself from these blood-thirsty pests.

Malaria

Mosquitoes (in this case, the genus Anopheles in particular) can carry parasites, which they pick up from one host and transmit to another as they feed. One such parasite is malaria, which is one of the leading causes of premature deaths around the world. In fact, according to the Centers for Disease Control, as many as 2 million deaths each year can be attributed to mosquito-induced malaria!

And although malaria isn’t as common in the US as it is in other regions of the world, it’s wise to take a few precautions if you anticipate traveling through Sub-Saharan Africa or Southeast Asia, where the disease is more prevalent. Taking prophylactic medications and sleeping under the cover of mosquito netting are two important steps you can take to protect yourself from this disease.

Yellow Fever

Yellow fever is classified as an acute viral hemorrhagic disease, with symptoms presenting as fever, nausea, body aches and more. It is primarily transmitted by the Aedes aegypti mosquito (although other species can carry the disease as well), and is found most frequently in the tropical regions of South America and Africa.

Although yellow fever can be extremely dangerous, a vaccine is widely available that prevents infection by this disease. Given the climatic conditions of the United States, it’s typically only recommended to those who will be traveling to regions of the world where yellow fever is more common. Once vaccinated, recipients can expect to be protected against yellow fever for up to 10 years.

Dengue Fever

Another viral disease that can be transmitted by mosquitoes is dengue fever, which is also transmitted by the Aedes genus of mosquito. In many ways, dengue fever is more dangerous than yellow fever, as there is no vaccine to prevent infection from the virus. Symptoms of dengue fever can include fever, headache and joint pains - in fact, the disease is often referred to as “breakbone fever” due to the excruciating body pains it can produce.

Because there is no vaccine that protects against dengue fever, preventing infection relies more on practicing personal safety measures, including the regular use of a mosquito repellant using DEET, employing mosquito netting over beds and wearing pants and long sleeved shirts to prevent exposing skin to mosquitoes.

If you live in the United States, it’s highly unlikely that you’ll come into contact with these diseases - the odds are pretty slim that the mosquito hovering annoyingly over your patio dinner plate will transmit anything more than an itchy red bump. However, if you plan to travel overseas to regions where these diseases are endemic, it’s worth taking the proper precaution to protect yourself from the threats these mosquitoes represent.