Drones for Area-Wide Larval Source Management of Malaria Mosquitoes

Given the stagnating progress in fight against malaria, there is an urgent need for area-wide integrated vector management strategies to complement existing intra-domiciliary tools, i.e., insecticide-treated bednets and indoor residual spraying. In this study, we describe a pilot trial using drones aerial application of Aquatain Mosquito Formulation (AMF), monomolecular surface film with larvicidal activity, African malaria mosquito Anopheles arabiensis irrigated rice agro-ecosystem Unguja island, Zanzibar, Tanzania. Nine paddies were randomly assigned three treatments: (a) control (drone spraying water only), (b) drone 1 mL/m2, or (c) 5 mL/m2 AMF. Compared paddies, AMF treatments resulted highly significant (p < 0.001) reductions number larvae pupae >90% fewer emerging adults. The effect treatment lasted minimum weeks post-treatment, larval densities reaching 94.7% week 99.4% 4 treatments, respectively. These results merit review WHO policy regarding source (LSM), which primarily recommends its use urban environments ‘few, fixed, findable’ breeding sites. Unmanned vehicles (UAVs) can rapidly treat many permanent, temporary, transient sites over large areas at low cost, thereby significantly enhancing role LSM contemporary elimination efforts.