Does the Bt Toxin actually kill bugs or just repel them?
442900
it does actually kill the bug.\nAfter being eaten, the Bt protein in the insect midgut is dissolved and enzymatically digested to render a solubilized and truncated protein toxin. The toxin then must bind to specific receptors in the gut where it causes pore formation and membrane disruption. The insect dies by septicemia and/or starvation. The efficiency of protein solubilization, truncation and toxin attachment for each insect and toxin combination accounts for the specificity and lethality of certain Bt proteins against different insect pests.
850022
Look for information on the Human Bot Fly, there are a lot of images, and they are nasty.\nThe genus Dermatobia contains only one species, D. hominis, the only species of bot fly that attacks humans (in addition to other primates). It is also known as the torsalo. In this species the fly's eggs are vectored by mosquitoes and muscoid flies; the female Dermatobia captures the fly and attaches its eggs to the body of the fly, then releases it. The eggs hatch either while the mosquito is feeding and the larvae may use the mosquito bite area as the entry point, or simply drop off the muscoid fly when it lands on the skin. They develop inside the subcutaneous layers, and after approximately 8 weeks they drop out to pupate for at least a week, typically in the soil. The adults are small gray flies resembling a blowfly.\n\nThis species is native to the New World tropics, though it is not abundant enough (nor harmful enough) to ever attain true pest status. Since the fly larvae can only survive the entire eight week development if the wound does not become infected, it is rare for patients to experience infections, unless they kill the larva without removing it completely (below). It is even possible that the fly larva may itself produce antibiotic secretions that help prevent infection while it is feeding.
1174143
The best one I've found is Deet, but I've heard good things about Bite Blocker:\n\nhttp://www.bug-spray.org/
366656
Depends entirely on the pesticide and in what situation the pesticide is being used.\n\nA broad-spectrum insecticide applied to an open field will have an effect on all of the insects, including beneficial insects such as bees, dragonflies, lacewings, and ladybird beetles in the field, in addition to whatever pests you were originally aiming at.\n\nThe same insecticide applied to a lake to kill mosquitoes would kill dragonfly larvae, fish, diving beetles, and frogs, but probably wouldn't kill any mosquitoes, since the predators would have taken care of them (assuming you hadn't already killed them with a previous pesticide application).\n\nThat same insecticide applied to a small, temporary pond that formed in a field after a rainfall would kill mosquito larvae, as well as some midge larvae, copepods and perhaps some snails, but nothing else as few other creatures are able to exploit that habitat.\n\nProper use of pesticides, even ones normally considered 'hard' chemicals, can be done in such a way that they have little impact on non-target populations.  Improper use of pesticides, even 'soft' chemicals, can kill wide numbers and varieties of non-target organisms, and can even make the pest situation worse if it kills off less numerous predators, and the pests are able to rebound faster.
395276
It doesn't affect the survival value of the genes of the wasp, because the stinging wasps are actually sterile female offspring of the queen wasp.\n\nIn terms of genetic survivorship, the hive could be considered one meta-organism.  The individual survival of a single insect doesn't matter, as long as the hive remains.  In order to affect the survival value of the wasps, you would have to create a major impact on the entire hive entity.  \n\nIf by stinging a person or large animal, that person or large animal is less likely to bother another wasp hive, that wasp actually increases the survivorship of its genes, even if the wasp itself dies.  Thus a hive with highly aggressive workers may actually be selected for, even if many of those workers die as a result of their aggression.
601120
Vitamin B can make people repellent to bugs.  Check with your doctor and read about it online.
368253
I bought a small device that clips onto your clothing, tents, etc. It emits a sound that drives away the insects. I love the smell of Skin so Soft but I'm allergic to it. The vitamin remedy may work but one must take it a few days for it to permeate the skin. The sound device is instantaneous. It operates on a battery. It may be purchased in most camping gear departments or sporting goods stores. I am allergic to mosquito bites and this thing is terrific! It is about the size of a small hen's egg, only flatter. It weighs next to nothing.\n\n  Just a fun fact: in the forest, if you crush fiddlehead ferns and rub the juice on your skin, it's a dandy repellant!
738084
You're right about the toxins.\n\nA number of bacteria produce toxins which "poison" the body.\nCooking may kill them, but it doesn't destroy the toxins. (basically, the heat from cooking isn't high enough to break the chemical bonds in the toxin molecules.)
824281
Monarchs have an effective chemical defense. When they eat milkweed, they sequester the poisonous cardenolides (also called cardiac glycosides) in the milkweed. Cardenolides are poisonous to vertebrates (although maybe not to invertebrates, bacteria, and viruses), and most Monarchs face little predation from frogs, lizards, mice, birds, and other species with backbones.\n\nBut being poisonous doesn't help the Monarchs after a predator has already killed and tried to eat them. Monarchs need some way to warn off predators before they become lunch. Monarchs do this through their warning coloration, or bright colors (yellow, orange, black, and white). This coloration warns potential predators that the animal contains poisonous chemicals. Warning coloration may work particularly well in adult butterflies because the hard body and wings allows a predator to bite the adult, taste the poison, and release the butterfly without killing it. It is common to see butterflies with beak-sized sections gone from their wings. Large wings help the butterfly escape relatively unharmed. Since Monarch wings contain distasteful cardenolides, one bite may discourage further attack without killing the adult.\n\nEarly studies of Monarchs showed that when a blue jay ate a Monarch butterfly, it vomited shortly afterwards due to the cardenolides. That bird also learned to never eat another Monarch butterfly. Like this early study, most research about Monarch predation has focused on bird predation, especially on adults, and researchers have found a few species that eat Monarchs despite the cardenolides. \n\nBird Predators\n\nIn the mid-1970s, scientists discovered Monarch overwintering roosts in Mexico. As they began to study these roosts, they found extraordinarily high mortality due to predation. Although researchers had reported some predation in California Monarch roosts before this, such high levels of predation spurred a number of studies investigating the species that preyed upon the Monarchs, ways those species avoided poisoning, the patterns of predation, and the impact of predation on Monarch populations.\n\nAlthough many birds live in the same area as the Mexican roosts, only a few feed heavily on Monarchs. Of 37 bird species reported in the region, 25 never feed on Monarchs while another eight only rarely eat a Monarch. Two species, Scott's oriole and Stellar's jay, occasionally hunt Monarchs, which means that small numbers of birds visit the roosts irregularly to feed on Monarchs. The two remaining species, black-headed grosbeaks and black-backed orioles, are the main Monarch predators. These two species feed twice daily at the roosts in mixed flocks of five to at least 60 birds and annually consume several million Monarchs in the Mexican roosts.\n\nBlack-headed grosbeaks and black-backed orioles have very different ways of avoiding poisoning when they eat Monarchs. Grosbeaks, which eat the entire Monarch abdomen, are relatively insensitive to cardenolides and can tolerate moderate levels of these chemicals in their digestive tract. Orioles, on the other hand, vomit after consuming much smaller amounts of cardenolides. They avoid poisoning by not eating the cuticle, which is where Monarchs store cardenolides. Orioles slit open the body and strip out the soft insides.\n\nOriole and grosbeak predation follows several patterns. For example, grosbeaks eat fewer female Monarchs than orioles. Female Monarchs have, on average, 30% higher cardenolide concentrations than males. Females, therefore, may be more toxic than males. Since orioles avoid the cardenolide-laden cuticle, increasing concentrations may not affect them. On the other hand, females also contain more lipids (fats) than males and therefore may provide more nutrients per prey item than males. Scientists still have not determined the relative important of these two different forces (avoiding poisons and obtaining nutrients).
298638
I have NEVER heard of taking Vitamin B to avoid insect bites.  I have heard that you should avoid eating bananas and try citrus fruits instead.  Apparently these fruits change the way the blood tastes to the mosquito.
28770
Yes, it is a new discovery by a scientist at North Carolina State University. Here is a direct link to the press release: \nhttp://www.ncsu.edu/news/press_releases/02_06/164.htm\n\nThe tomato compound apparently repels ticks, cockroaches, and some other insects. The big question will be "How effective is it?" since female mosquitoes basically just follow carbon dioxide from our bodies.
856340
had the same prob years ago, the antibotica was working for me 2 days i tooked the first one a little. amazing but true, i was totally ok after 11 days!!!\n\ngood luck and my best regards;\n\nLucy
511381
All commercial bug sprays contain nerve poisons.  \nThe only common bug spray that works by covering the respiratory holes is white oil, and that is normally home made. Commercial sprays are all nerve poisons.\n\nThe poison causes the bug's nerves to fire continuously and as a result the bug loses control over its muscles. That initially causes the bug to fall to the floor and spin around as it undergoes something equivalent to a seizure.\n\nBecause the seizure never stops eventually the bug simply dies of exhaustion. It is like being forced to run forever without ever being able to stop. All the muscles are being forced to work continuously and eventually the body simply runs out of energy.\n\n\nloligo your answer is almost completely wrong. It is almost impossible to find a bug spray today that contains Ach-estrase. All modern supermarket sprays are pyrethroid based and while they are still nerve toxins they are quite unrelated to ach-estrases and much safer.\n\nMore importantly death does NOT result from spiracle closure since very few insects can actually seal their spiracles, certainly not cockroaches, spiders or flies.
451704
The really good stuf is permethrin arthropod repellent if you can find it. You spray it on your clothes and it has to dry before you wear them - very potent. Another trick that works well - ticks cant stand carbon monoxide - if we were in a really bad place for ticks and had nothing else we would take a hose and put over the exhaust pipe of your vehicle and put it on the legs of your pants,socks and shoes. If you do find the spray mentioned above be careful with it and use it like the instructions say. Have fun.
1147657
This is as Serious Question, especially when tackling West Nile Virus, Malaria, Dengue, all vector borne disease.\n\nGoogle this on the web, there was a recent report about Rain and Butterflies (Slightly larger than bugs) They are also frighten of rain, as it is dangerous to them, the relative size of the water droplet, would harm them.\n\nBugs, usually try to hid from the rain, going into overhangs,  under large leaves, seeking shelter when they can find it.\n\nGood Question.  Next point, ever wonder where Flies goes after dark.
436972
by killing insects, it disrupts the foodchain at a low level, affecting everything above it. also, any good things the insects might have done, like pollinating plants etc will be stopped.
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>>>>Specifically, how do rodenticides and insecticides kill pests?\n\nIf you want specificity I suggest you find a website that describes the mode of action. You are looking at a minimum of 10, 00 words if you want specifics, and no one is going to post 10, 00 words here.\n\nIn vaguely general terms however common rodenticides work by preventing the blood from clotting. This leads to bleeding into the joints and into the organs, and ultimately causes death from dehydration.\n\nInsecticides work by causing the nerves to fire continuously. That in turn causes the muscles to contract uncontrollably. The constant muscle contraction causes the insect  to die of exhauation.\n\n>>>>Am I limited to which ones I as a layman can buy for private use?\n\nYes, every state has its own restrictions on what licences are required for which pesticides. For example you can not but arsenic or fluoroacetate in any state as a layman although they are common commercial insecticides and rodenticides respectively.\n\n>>>Are their any controls in place?\n\nYes. In most states there are lists of restricted pesticides available only to licenced professionals. The restrictions and lists vary. You need to produce a licence to obtain the restricted substances.