Timing of Lambda-Cyhalothrin and Pyriproxyfen Barrier Treatments for Aedes albopictus (Diptera: Culicidae) Management

Barrier applications, treating vegetation and other potential mosquito resting areas with residual pesticides, have become standard practice for commercial pest management professionals offering mosquito control services. These treatments are generally effective in reducing numbers of the Asian tiger mosquito, Aedes albopictus (Skuse). In the temperate climates, adult Ae. albopictus populations are naturally eliminated each winter and must be grown from diapausing eggs the following spring. Therefore, early-season control interventions timed before populations rebound may further reduce population growth compared with interventions that take place after the population has peaked. We compared Early (1 June) barrier applications of lambda-cyhalothrin (Demand CS) mixed with the insect growth regulator pyriproxyfen (Archer IGR) to Late applications (31 July) in urban and suburban residential parcels in New Jersey. These applications resulted in 43 and 51% reductions in adult Ae. albopictus populations in the Early and Late intervention study parcels, respectively, when compared with the untreated Controls. Indirect applications of pyriproxyfen (i.e., rainwater runoff transferring pesticide) to potential larval habitat did not cause mortality in laboratory larval bioassays but direct mist applications of the Archer and Demand combination to larval habitats led to elevated larval mortality over a 6-wk period. The Early-season intervention offered no advantage in efficacy on adult populations compared with the Late-season intervention, which targeted peak mosquito populations. Our study provides support for the efficacy of barrier applications and illustrates the importance of timing barrier treatments to coincide with established Ae. albopictus action thresholds.