Experts Predict Buggy Summer In New York and Across the U.S.
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Posted on June 21, 2012 with No Comments
Mosquitoes, ants, water bugs, ticks and bees. They are coming out all over the US with a vengeance this summer according to bug experts.
The city of New Orleans has reported an elevated number of mosquitoes this year, and so have many cities in northeast Illinois, as well as St. Paul, Minn., where pest control workers have reported a 50 percent increase in call volume.
In the Northeast, a mild winter and a mellow spring with warm and wet conditions have contributed to a flourishing bug population.
Mike Deutsch, an urban Entomologist with Arrow Exterminating Company, told FOX News, “We are bracing for a major bug war, if you will. It all depends on how the summer is. If the summer is really hot and there is a lot of moisture like there has been the last month or so, the population of insects is going to be out of control.”
And there are certain species entomologists and exterminators are looking out for — like the Asian tiger mosquito — a very aggressive version of mosquito that bites during the day. Many types of bugs have arrived far ahead of schedule, said Deutsch.
“The mosquitoes were out early. Normally you don’t really find them until June, but we’ve got reports of mosquito problems as early as April, which is very early. We also saw carpenter ant activity much earlier.”
One of the biggest concerns in having extra mosquitoes around this summer is the possible increase in numbers of West Nile Virus cases. Last year, 11 people in the New York City area contracted the virus. Two of them died.
Residents can take an active role in eliminating bug’s breeding grounds which usually involves water collection sites. Dominick Ninivaggi, superintendent of Mosquito Vector Control for Suffolk County in Long Island, said, “It is important to try and get rid of any standing water, particularly after a rain.”
Get rid of any buckets, birdbaths, anything that has picked up water because these mosquitoes can breed in a paper cup or even a bottle cap.”
Ninivaggi said mosquitoes are not the only blood-sucking predators they are worried about.
“We are also seeing an increase in certain species of ticks,” he said. “Ticks in the Northeast are a big problem, with the transmission of lime disease and certain other tick-borne diseases. The mild winter seems to be giving us an upper-crop of the ticks as well.”
Read More: Experts predict buggy summer across the US
Tags: NY Pest Control
Category: Flying Insects, Mosquitoes, NY Pest Control, Pests
