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Mosquitoes aim to feed and fly

Recent rains let bothersome bugs know that new breeding grounds are to be found. And counties' squads are armed to keep the invasions down.

By ALDO NAHED
Published June 19, 2006

But don't fret - just yet. Mosquito control squads in Hillsborough, Pinellas and Pasco counties have already upped their attack on the bloodsuckers.

"The season is now," said Nancy Page, the program manager for Pinellas County Mosquito Control. "The storms have picked up in May, and they'll be creeping up until the end of October."

Page says the unusually dry weather this spring kept mosquitoes in concentrated areas. But the recent rains gave them more places to go, and increased their chances of spreading viruses.

As more rain is expected, inspectors - with chicken flocks, spray trucks, helicopters and planes - are out in force to battle mosquito populations, which can breed in the millions this time of year.

Once a week, inspectors draw blood samples from sentinel chickens throughout the Tampa Bay area and send them to state health officials, who check the blood for West Nile virus, Eastern equine encephalitis and St. Louis encephalitis.

In 2005, there were 21 confirmed human cases of West Nile virus in Florida, 18 of those in Pinellas County. There were no deaths. In Pasco County, a 2-year-old girl died of Eastern equine encephalitis complications. No mosquito-related diseases in humans were recorded in Hillsborough.

"Right now the activity is very low," said Hillsborough County's environmental manager Eliot Gregos. "In the next month or so, we'll see it pick up."

Gregos said about six sentinel chickens in Hillsborough County have tested positive for West Nile virus so far this year. Health officials are closely monitoring the area, but there's no need for alarm, he said.

"There's always a low number in nature," Gregos said.

Symptoms for mosquito-borne diseases can be similar to cold or flu. A mild illness and fever, severe headaches, body aches, nausea, vomiting, rashes and sensitivity to light.

Dr. Carlos Fernades, manager of Hillsborough County's mosquito control, said his agency now receives about 150 calls a week and expects that many calls in a day after the Fourth of July. Pinellas County answered 1,600 calls last year. Pasco had similar numbers.

Officials say they welcome the residents' calls because it pinpoints areas they may not know about.

Keith Khan, called from Town 'N Country's Twelve Oaks neighborhood. He said it became unbearable for him and his family to go outside to their pool patio at night.

Inspector Robert Martino went to investigate. Before he pulled into the Khan's residence Friday morning, he checked nearby manholes and also the edge of a pond for mosquito eggs.

"You want to catch them in the stages before adulthood," Martino said, while closely examining samples he'd scooped.

Martino, 52, has been an inspector for two years. As he surveyed the Khan property, he noticed many problems.

He found a fountain collecting debris. He sampled, but found nothing. He moved on, checking a dark folding chair, a cooler, rain gutters, a bird feeder and anything that held water. He saw stagnant water, but no sign of mosquito eggs.

"Usually you find them where you least expect them," said Martino, who has encountered mosquitoes in tire swings, children's sandboxes and once in a cemetery crypt.

Mosquitoes are known to breed in containers as small as bottle caps, if conditions are right.

Martino sprayed a fog to kill mosquitoes for at least seven days around the Khan house. Enough time for Martino to find the cause of infestation.

Khan was grateful for the help and said he'll be more watchful of water that collects in his property.

Tropical Storm Alberto's rainfall, which dropped about 7 inches over the area, quickly soaked into the dry ground, said Dennis Moore, director of the Pasco County mosquito control district.

That didn't give mosquitoes a lot of places to breed, but a full moon brought a high tide, coupled with strong winds, that pushed salt water inland, he said.

"We're seeing a lot more mosquito activity in the marsh areas," Moore said.

A female mosquito, the ones that bite humans, can lay up to 300 eggs a week, he said. "You can see how the population, if left untreated, can get out of hand."

Fernandes says helicopters are used for coastal areas and in places where it's difficult for a sprayer truck to reach. All of the spraying is done at night because the heat can interact badly with the bacteria that kill the mosquitoes and because that is prime time for mosquitoes.

"This is an issue that we have to be fast on our feet about," Fernandes said. "Mosquitoes are here, the virus is here and the people encroachment in natural areas has weakened our defenses."

[Last modified June 25, 2006, 11:40:52]