SAN DIEGO COUNTY, Calif. — April marks the start of mosquito season here in San Diego County, and standing water from recent rains is making the perfect conditions for them to multiply.
CBS 8 checked in with the County's Vector Control Program, which monitors insects and animals that can transmit diseases to humans, to see what effect all the rain is having on mosquitoes and other bugs.
“Right now we’re seeing it starting to warm up and we’re starting to see the mosquitoes getting active again,” said Allison Bray, supervising environmental health specialist for the County's Vector Control Program.
“With all this rain, we’re going to be seeing a lot more standing water and that’s where mosquitoes lay their eggs and grow when they’re young, so more standing water could mean more mosquitoes,” said Bray.
When it’s warm outside, a mosquito can go from an egg to an adult in as little as 5-7 days. That’s why Bray says it’s important to check around our homes for standing water.
“You should look just about anywhere that can hold at least a quarter-inch of water, so even the saucers under a potted plant, your drains, your gutters, things like buckets or containers left outside,” said Bray.
And if you have a backyard pond, they’re offering the public free mosquitofish, which kill mosquito larvae. You can pick them up at their office in Kearny Mesa or at one of their ten distribution sites throughout the County.
And mosquitoes aren’t the only bugs flourishing with all the rain. Bees are having a go of it too.
“All the plants are blooming. Once the nectar and the pollen start flowing, that will stimulate the queen to start laying more eggs. She’ll lay two to three-thousand eggs a day,” said Mike Stanton, chief bee wrangler at Aliza’s Bee Removal.
He says they’re getting a lot of calls about bee swarms right now, and he offered a few tips to prevent bee swarms around our homes.
“The bees, check your house, they’re going to look at your eaves, irrigation boxes, any hole. You see a hole in your house bigger than a quarter inch, caulk it. Your eave vents, put new mesh on them,” said Stanton.
But as for mosquitoes, Bray says the best way to keep them from biting is to wear an insect repellant, especially those with an EPA-approved active ingredient.
“It’ll say active ingredient right on the label,” said Bray. “You want to look for one that contains deet picaridin, ir3535, or oil of lemon Eucalyptus.”
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