How does the trap keep new mosquitoes from coming out?
Eggs are deposited on the trap. The resulting larvae and pupae will swim in the water that is exposed to the outside. With the addition of water, the larvae and pupae naturally dive for protection, and due to the design of the trap, they are also flushed downward. (Movement of a person or animal near the trap also can trigger this diving reflex.) When the larvae and pupae dive or are flushed, the only place they can go is through a small gap that leads to the inside of the trap. They then swim back to the surface (to breathe) on the inside of the trap. With food and light available on the inside of the trap, they have no reason to swim back through the gap to the outside. Many of the larvae may starve on the inside of the trap. Those that do not starve grow to adulthood inside the trap and cannot escape.
