Dengue is a prevalent arboviral disease and the development of insecticide resistance among its vectors impedes endeavors to control it. Coffee is drunk by millions of people daily worldwide, which is associated with the discarding of large amounts of waste. Coffee and its waste contain large amounts of chemicals many of which are highly toxic and none of which have a history of resistance in mosquitoes. Once in solution, coffee is brownish in colour, resembling leaf infusion, which is highly attractive to gravid mosquitoes. To anticipate the environmental issues related to the increasing popularity of coffee as a drink, and also to combat insecticide resistance, we explored the deterrence potentials of coffee leachates against the ovipositing and embryonic stages of the dengue vector, Aedes albopictus. In a series of choice, no-choice, and embryo toxicity bioassays, we examined changes in the ovipositional behaviours and larval eclosion of Ae. albopictus in response to coffee extracts at different concentrations. Oviposition responses were extremely low when ovicups holding highly concentrated extract (HCE) of coffee were the only oviposition sites. Gravid females retained increased numbers of mature eggs until 5 days post-blood feeding. When provided an opportunity to oviposit in cups containing coffee extracts and with water, egg deposition occurred at lower rates in those containing coffee, and HCE cups were far less attractive to females than those containing water only. Females that successfully developed in a coffee environment preferentially oviposited in such cups when in competition with preferred oviposition sites (water cups), but this trait did not continue into the fourth generation. Larval eclosion occurred at lower rates among eggs that matured in a coffee environment, especially among those that were maintained on HCE-moistened substrates. The observations of the present study indicate a pronounced vulnerability of Ae. albopictus to the presence of coffee in its habitats during the early phases of its life cycle. The observations that coffee repels gravid females and inhibits larval eclosion provide novel possibilities in the search for novel oviposition deterrents and anti-larval eclosion agents against dengue vectors.

Objective: To test the effectiveness of conidial spore formulations [Aspergillus tubingensis\ud (A. tubingensis) and Trichoderma harzianum (T. harzianum)] against tropical bed\ud bugs, Cimex hemipterus.\ud Methods: Spore formulations were made from two fungal strains, T. harzianum and\ud A. tubingensis. The bed bugs were exposed to the conidial spores placed soaked onto a\ud fabric cloth for 1 h and the mortality counts were recorded daily until 14 days.\ud Results: Mean survival times based on Kaplan–Meier survival analysis showed no\ud significant differences between all the concentrations in both the fungal isolates:\ud T. harzianum and A. tubingensis. However, the evaluation of both the isolates in terms of\ud virulence resulted in low lethal hours in all the concentrations except for the high concentration\ud of A. tubingensis (LT50 = 44.629 h) at the conidial exposure of 1 × 106 spores/\ud mL. Rapid mortality of the bed bugs was observed from Day 6 to Day 12, ranging from\ud 13% to 90% in all three concentrations of A. tubingensis. With reference to the\ud T. harzianum exposure, the concentration of 1 × 104 spores/mL displayed a gradual increase\ud in the percentage mortality of 90 on Day 14.\ud Conclusions: Approaches to the bed bugs treatment should be explored in-depth using a\ud natural biological agent like fungus especially A. tubingensis to reduce this pest population,\ud in order to replace chemical methods

Mating is a physiological process of crucial importance underlying the size and maintenance of mosquito populations. In sterile and incompatible insect technologies (SIT and IIT), mating is essential for mass production, persistence, and success of released individuals, and is a central parameter for judging the effectiveness of SIT/IIT programs. Some mosquitoes have an enormous reproductive potential for both themselves and pathogens and mating may contribute to persistence of infection in nature. As Aedes albopictus can transmit flaviviruses both sexually and horizontally, and as infected insects are usually derived from laboratory colonies, we investigated the implications of mating between a long-term laboratory colony of Ae. albopictus and wild populations.

Termite infestations in urban areas are a serious problem because they cause negative economic effects, reduce the esthetic value of buildings, damage crops, and require household repairs. Chemical controls are the most common method used against subterranean termites, and baiting has emerged as one of the prominent control methods. The goal of this research was to determine the efficacy of termite baiting by treating one of six active termite stations (selective baiting) with chlorfluazuron baits to eradicate six populations of subterranean termites. This work shows that the placement of chlorfluazuron baits in one of the active stations was sufficient to destroy a colony that was interconnected with multiple chlorfluazuron-free stations. In general, it requires an average of 4–8 weeks for a quantity of less than 300 g of chlorfluazuron bait to remove a termite infestation at the study site.