Experimental use of Natular XRT tablets in a North Shore suburb of Chicago, IL

In the northern suburbs of Chicago, stormwater catch basins are the primary source of vector mosquitoes targeted by the local mosquito abatement district, and therefore effective catch basin larvicides are needed. From June to September 2011, Natular XRT was applied at label rate to a cluster of 20 catch basins and compared to a cluster of 20 untreated basins all within a small 0.21 km2 area of catch basins known historically to have high levels of mosquitoes. All monitored basins held immature stages of mosquitoes at least once; however, significantly fewer immatures overall were observed from Natular-treated basins than in untreated basins during 14 wk of monitoring. During the study a portion of Natular-treated catch basins was cleaned as part of scheduled maintenance, and this appeared to remove both the larvicide and any control effects. Better timing of catch basin maintenance events is suggested, particularly if, as the results of this study suggest, a single larvicide treatment may be effective for an entire season.