Testing began June 1st, 2010 in Washington and thus far no cases of West Nile have surfaced, but officials indicate that due diligence when it comes to eliminating potential mosquito larvae habitat in the State will definitely help keep the number of biting mosquitoes lower, and thus lowering the risk of a person getting bit by an infected mosquito. ( source )

What does this have to do with water quality?!?!?

So glad you asked. Female mosquitoes require a body of stagnant, untreated water in which to deposit their eggs. In that water mosquito larvae will hatch from the eggs in a matter days, and sometimes in less time, depending on the type of mosquito. Those larvae will then become full-grown bloodsuckers… and they will have a heck of an appetite!

1. Therefore, all you pool, pond, birdbath, and fountain owners need to make sure your water features stay properly treated and never sit stagnant long enough for mosquitoes to use as insect delivery rooms.
2. If you’ve got buckets, pails, old car parts, tires, flipped over lawn furniture, or other yard stuff/junk that can collect water when it rains… knock the water out of as many as possible after each rainstorm. Otherwise each body of water, no matter how small, could serve as a mosquito breeding ground.
3. Keep old wells or any other ‘holes’ that could collect water drained and/or covered — or risk creating the perfect mosquito maternity ward.

4. Keep all gutters and drainpipes free of obstructions so water flows freely from your roof, into the gutters, down the drainpipes, and onto the ground where it (hopefully) gets absorbed quickly.

While not a complete list of ways to keep those pesky mosquitoes under control, following that advice ought to help reduce the number of mosquito larvae in your immediate area… and if nothing else, that’s a great start.

What About Mosquito Traps and Mosquito Netting?

Both excellent ideas for outdoor activities in areas where mosquitoes like to hang out. As humans we can spray areas suspected of harboring mosquitoes all we want, but we will never get rid of them all and devices like the SkeeterVac, which users set up away from their outdoor gatherings, and Mosquito Netting, which users drape over their backyard umbrellas to create a ’safe zone’, make it possible to enjoy the great outdoors anyways.

SkeeterVac

Black Mosquito Netting

Moral of the story?

Stagnant water in your yard could lead to having more mosquitoes in your immediate area and it only takes ONE mosquito carrying West Nile to ‘bite’ a human… and make that person very ill.

( Fewer Mosquitoes Overall ) = ( Fewer Infected Mosquitoes )

Don’t believe us? Take a look at these excerpts from an article posted in the Galveston Daily News on May 21st, 2010:

Get ready for mosquito season — the little critters are about to descend on the unwary living near the county’s beaches and southern bayside areas.

Nurtured by high tides at the beginning of the month that were reinforced by last Friday’s heavy rains, the insects’ larvae are about to hatch for the first serious swarm of salt marsh mosquitoes this year.

Fortunately for humans, salt marsh mosquitoes do not carry the West Nile virus or St. Louis encephalitis, but their bloodsucking still can be a major source of discomfort. ( source )

For all of you thinking, “So what? A Few mosquitoes buzzing around won’t make anyone TOO miserable, right?”

John Marshall, the director of Galveston County’s mosquito control program begs to differ:

He said that expression describes official estimates of the average number of insects landing on the lower half of human bodies in any one minute during the swarm.

“Most people in the affected areas will have six or seven mosquitoes per minute landing between their belt buckle and their ankle from this evening through Monday evening,” he said.

“But some could experience about 15 and, at the upper limit, the number could reach 25.” ( source )

Did you read that? Between 6 and 25 hungry little mosquitoes landing on a person’s leg in a minute’s time. Yuck!

What Does Water Quality Have to Do With Mosquito Control?

Simple: If you have no stagnant water around, the mosquitoes have to find someplace else to lay their eggs. Also, since mosquitoes like to hide out during the day, preferably near water, it reduces the number of mosquito hideouts on your property.

• Get that pool open promptly, or at at the very least make sure it has some sanitizer in it so the mosquitoes will want to hang out and hatch their young’uns elsewhere.
• Go around your yard and make sure no unused pots, water buckets, old tires, children’s play things, etc. have water sitting inside them. even the smallest amount of stagnant water makes for an oasis for mosquitoes.

• Keep grass in the yard trimmed neatly so mosquitoes have one less place to hang out during the day.

As far as avoiding the blood thirsty heathens after they have already hatched, well, experts suggest staying indoors about an hour or so before sundown. For folks who need to venture out at that time, experts suggest wearing long sleeve shirts, wearing long pants, and using a good quality insect repellent on all exposed areas of skin.

What About Mosquito Traps and Mosquito Netting?

Both excellent ideas for outdoor activities in areas where mosquitoes like to hang out. As humans we can spray areas suspected of harboring mosquitoes all we want, but we will never get rid of them all and devices like the SkeeterVac, which users set up away from their outdoor gatherings, and Mosquito Netting, which users drape over their backyard umbrellas to create a ‘safe zone’, make it possible to enjoy the great outdoors anyways.