The Mosquito Device Press

Mosquito annoying, but only to hooligans

Coquitlam Now (Coquitlam, BC, Canada)
Published: August 22, 2007

Signs banning loitering may no longer be necessary, if an ultrasonic device known as the Mosquito catches on in B.C.

The Mosquito is designed to emit an unpleasant but benign high- pitched sound that only young people can hear -- it's widely used in Europe to repel loitering hooligans.

"Either someone has come along and wiped them (teenagers) off the face of the earth, or it's working beautifully," a shop keeper in South Wales is quoted as saying in a news release announcing the Mosquito's arrival in Canada. Dynatrac Systems Canada Inc., the company distributing the product locally, says the Mosquito is popular with police departments, convenience stores, railway companies and others in the U.K.

The device takes advantage of the fact that age-related hearing loss makes sounds with frequencies in the 18 to 20 kHz range inaudible to most people over 25.

Such sounds are, however, very annoying to those aged 13 to 25 -- but apparently not to small children and dogs.

For the week ending Wednesday, Aug. 15, School District 43's vandalism report included "irreparable damage" to a slide at Birchland Elementary, the cutting of a chain-link fence at Mary Hill Elementary, nine windows broken at various schools and six incidents of graffiti.

At up to $1,400 a pop, the Mosquito isn't cheap. It may, however, save the school district and business community a lot of money over the long term by discouraging loitering and vandalism.

Of course, we're not saying all young people are out torching playgrounds and smashing windows. Most are more likely to be doing volunteer work or other positive activities.

But in the fight against that small element that enjoys destroying the property of others, the Mosquito might be worth the buzz.