Global warming may affect pesticide effectiveness

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2015-11/esoa-gwm113015.php

Public Release: 30-Nov-2015
Global warming may affect pesticide effectiveness
Entomological Society of America

The effectiveness of an important mosquito-fighting insecticide may be impaired by global warming, according to a recent study in the Journal of Medical Entomology. Two researchers from Montana State University, graduate student Shavonn Whiten and Dr. Robert Peterson, have shown that permethrin becomes less effective at killing the yellowfever mosquito (Aedes aegypti) as temperatures increase.

These mosquitoes, which are found in the tropics and the subtropics, can transmit viruses that lead to dengue, chikungunya, yellow fever, and other diseases.

"Many of the areas where these insecticides are employed have varying drastic temperature changes," Whiten said.

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