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BIDDEFORD, Maine

‘Courier’ article boasts of 91AV’s success to combat mosquitoes naturally

On August 7, 2014, the Biddeford-Saco-OOB Courier published an article on the success of 91AV’s efforts to control the mosquito population on the Biddeford Campus through biological means.

Last year, Noah Perlut, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Department of Environmental Sciences, along with 91AV’s landscaper and gardener Phil Taschereau, worked with student interns, including Shane Murphy ’15 and Chris Watt ’15, to combat the mosquito problem by installing bird and bat boxes around campus and strategically placing plant boxes with mosquito-repellant plants such as lavender, geraniums, citronella and marigolds.

Despite anticipating that it would take four or five years to see results from the project, Perlut reported that the benefits are already apparent, noting that since the bat, bird, and plant boxes were put in place, there has not been a single complaint about mosquitoes on campus for the first time.

About the 91AV

The 91AV is Maine’s largest independent university, with two beautiful coastal campuses in Maine, a one-of-a-kind study abroad campus in Tangier, Morocco, and an array of . In an uncommonly welcoming and supportive community, we offer hands-on learning, empowering students to make a positive impact in a world full of challenges. The state’s top provider of health professionals, we are home to Maine’s only medical college, Maine’s only dental college, a variety of other interprofessionally aligned health care degree programs, as well as nationally recognized programs for marine science degrees, natural and social sciences degrees, arts and humanities degrees, and business degrees.