Re: [Killietalk] Bloodworms

[Scott Davis <unclescott at prodigy_net>]

It isn't aimed at the adult mossies though. The
mosquito dunks (named for the donut shaped items put
in the water) release the bacteria of the strain
Bacillus thuringiensis isrealensis which are eaten by
mosquito (and black fly and some midge) larvae. The
bacteria disrupt the digestive process of the larvae
and they starve. Suppose the dips are a larvicide.

The Bti strain is supposed to be one of the Bacillus
thuringiensis soil bacteria researchers have isolated.
The idea of treating standing wet areas is that it is
away from people, using a fairly benign product and
gets the mosquitoes before they become airborne and
spread around. Used in genuine wetlands which should
have mosquito predators including killies, several
food chains could be interrupted and biodiversity
could decline.

So if the bloodworms are dining upon veggie material
and not straining bacteria from the water, maybe they
will survive. And there I am with a radio to pass the
time, inverted bucket for a campstool and net,
snagging the occasional bloodworm.

All the best,

Scott
Park Forest, IL

--- Markus Brown <TheBiologist at charter_net> wrote:
> Being an insecticide, I would think it would
> interrupt the cycle of all 
> chitonous (sp?) adult insects, interrupting tier
> cycle, eliminating the 
> cycle.
> Markus
> Astoria, Or


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