Mosquito boom or bust? It may be neither
A recent spike in mosquito activity may make it seem like there are more blood-sucking bugs around than usual, but local experts say the numbers are typical for this time of year.
Officials with the Windsor-Essex County Health Unit say the recent heat and humidity combined with wet weather has created the perfect breeding grounds for mosquitoes, but they admit -- it’s been worse before.
Environmental health manager with WECHU, Phil Wong, says the mosquito surveillance program started this season in May.
“Looks like we are at pretty much on par with where we were last year...To date we’ve identified and captured 32,000 mosquitoes in the 2021 season. For some perspective, for last year in the exact same week, we had 32,000 as well.”
Wong says there were more mosquitoes buzzing around Windsor-Essex in 2019, despite how it seems today.
“(In) 2019, on this exact same week during mosquito season, we had 46,000 mosquitoes caught and identified. So, there was a substantial actual decrease since 2019.”
Wong believes it may seem like there are more mosquitoes around than usual, since more people have spent time outside during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Wong tells CTV News Windsor the health unit has set up 14 more mosquito traps than usual this year, including in places not previously tested, like Point Pelee, because since 2016 they have identified invasive mosquitoes in Windsor-Essex, and that they’re 'here to stay.'
“They do spread some of these more exotic mosquito diseases such as the Zika virus. We found it here, we found it in 2016 and we continue to find it every year since then.”
Earlier this month, the WECHU identified Aedes albopictus - which is native to Southeast Asia - during routine surveillance in Windsor, noting they are aggressive daytime biters, with peaks in activity in the early morning and late afternoon.
Wong says routine surveillance is a bit different than in other places across Ontario or Canada due to the geography and local climate, adding it tends to be warmer, wetter and more humid than other regions.
“The habitat for mosquito growth and population is dependant on temperature, rain and things of that nature, so, when there are issues with standing water in our region then you’ll give opportunity for mosquitoes to breed more.”
Health unit officials say they’re monitoring traps closely due to the invasive species’ ability to reproduce quickly. Wong explains it takes about seven to 10 days for mosquitos to mature from egg to adult, reminding residents to remove any standing water from their property.
Wong encourages anyone to check out the health unit website for weekly updates on mosquito tracking.
“You can go on there and see by week for the last five years, I believe, what type of mosquitoes we’re catching and which municipality they’re in and you can really get a good glimpse of what we’re dealing with year after year.”
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