From Margaret Monroe
West Nile virus is obviously a dangerous and difficult problem facing the people of Mexico and South America. I found it mildly bemusing that the main control measure cited was vaccination for the “beasts of burden” (26 July, p 12). Even if there existed a vaccine for animals other than horses (and there doesn’t, as your article stated), it seems a hopeless measure. It would be exceedingly expensive and animals would need booster shots after six months anyway.
A more effective approach would be to control the vector population – the mosquitoes. This has been done extensively in the past to help control parasite-borne diseases like malaria. In Thailand, there was a very successful programme of stocking bodies of fresh water with varieties of native fish that prey on mosquito larvae.
Similar biocontrol measures targeted at the vector have utilised a range of carnivorous aquatic insects, each endemic to the area being treated. These carnivorous insect larvae are among the hardiest of aquatic organisms, and like mosquito larvae can survive in even the poorest conditions. Another simple and cheap measure is to eliminate standing bodies of water.
Gladstone, Queensland, Australia
