ARS scientists and researchers at Agro Research Inc., in Pago Pago, American Samoa, discovered the oil from a local plant repelled mosquitoes and pest ants in preliminary studies. The team is working to identify the active ingredients in the plant essential oil.
The essential oil was tested on the red imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta. Significant repellency was observed with concentrations diluted more than 100-fold, and the active components are likely a small fraction of the total oil.
Two mosquito species (Aedes aegypti and Anopheles albimanus) were used to evaluate the essential oil’s repellency.
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