Tamil Nadu: 9-year-old girl makes cost-effective mosquito trap by using old tyres

A nine-year-old girl from Kalpakkam in Tamil Nadu has come with a simple and cost-effective method of homemade trap for insects by using the concept of Ovillantas. In a video posted on YouTube, Indira can be seen explaining what all is needed to make the Ovillantas including a 13-inch old tyre, 1 hanger, a 1-inch PVC pipe, silicone glue, ball valve, PVC glue, filter paper and a bottle filled with water. 

To make the eco-friendly and easy to assemble mosquito traps, the individual has to cut the tyre in two sections in order to make an oval with the opening. Ovillanta is basically a mosquito trap that is made out of a recycled car tyre. The bottom piece of the tyre is then filled with water. Further, a valve to release the solution sits at the base of the trap that allows it to drain and filter the entire device as it has filter paper attached to both its sides. These also work as landing strips for the insects that identify water and then lay eggs on them allowing the larvae to float on the water.

The nine-year-old’s practical application of Ovillanta can be hung on walls or even in outdoor spaces like the gardens. After a couple of days, when the insects are stuck inside the structure, the ball valve can be utilised to drain out the water from the surface, destroying the insects and their eggs using chlorine solution. 

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Ovillanta comes from Mexican villages

However, the concept of Ovillanta is not new for people to prevent mosquitoes. It was common in Mexican villages. Even the word ‘Ovillanta’ comes from the combination of Latin and Spanish words.  According to existing records, the concept of ovillantas was first developed by accident by a chemistry professor with  Laurentian University in Ontario, Canada, Gérard Ulíbarri while working on a project involving mosquito traps to tackle the West Nile virus that broke in the 2000s. As compared to any other mosquito trap method, it is reportedly derived that ovillantas can destroy up to 7 times more mosquitoes than any other insect traps.

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