Cooler Northern California summer doesn't mean mosquito risk is gone, officials warn
A cooler summer in Northern California may have kept mosquitoes out of sight and out of mind, but Placer County officials are warning: don't let your guard down.
Crews at the Placer Mosquito and Vector Control District are ramping up efforts as they prepare for the busiest part of mosquito season, which peaks in late summer. They're closely monitoring mosquito activity and tracking the spread of West Nile virus, which is already showing up in the region.
"This about four period of the summer is the time when people should take every precaution from getting mosquito bites," said Joel Buettner, General Manager of the Placer Mosquito and Vector Control District.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 49 human cases of West Nile virus have been reported across the country so far this year, two of them in California. In Placer County alone, 18 mosquito samples tested positive just last week.
Inside the lab in Roseville, crews are trapping and testing mosquitoes from across the county.
"When our mosquitos come back we put them in our negative eighty freezer," said Lab Supervisor Casey Hubble. "We do not want them alive during identification and we don't want them alive when we're testing them because they have the potential to carry West Nile virus."
What makes this year different is the weather. Fewer scorching-hot days have slightly slowed mosquito activity for now.
"The cooler weather that we've had this week is slowing down the behavior of the mosquitos in terms of finding blood meals," Buettner said. "But we expect that it will return back to normal by next week."
Officials say public prevention is just as important as lab testing and fieldwork.
"You need to know when they're out," Buettner added. "The ones that carry West Nile virus are common in the morning around dawn and dusk. Wearing a repellent that has an EPA-registered ingredient like oil of lemon eucalyptus can help."
Residents are also urged to dump and drain standing water around their homes, which are common mosquito breeding grounds.
Health experts stress that just one bite is enough to spread infection and say with cases already confirmed in California, personal protection should be a top priority.
