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Mosquitoes more deadly than ever

By Jeannie Nugent/OF THE COMMERCIAL STAFF
Wednesday, July 4, 2007 11:16 PM CDT

Summer party crashers — the winged, blood-sucking kind — are as inevitable as the left-over smoke from the annual brigade of Independence Day fireworks. Even a heavy dousing of industrial chemicals won’t keep mosquitoes completely away from outdoor events in Southeast Arkansas this season.

But the battle of the bug must continue on even stronger than before, experts say, and not just because the biting swarms can ruin an outdoor celebration quicker than ants carrying away the dessert.

Curbing the mosquito population, and preventing bites to humans is now a national health priority with the surge in cases of the deadly West Nile virus.

The deadly neurological disease — which is spread through mosquitoes — first hit American soil in 1999. Last year, Arkansas saw 29 human cases of West Nile, including four deaths. This year’s first case was reported in Cleveland County in early June.

So should the party be moved indoors?

Not necessarily, says Dr. John Hopkins, entomologist with the University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service.

“DEET is your best bet,” Hopkins said, speaking of the ingredient found in most over-the-counter insect repellents.

The summer staple, though, should be used with a heavy dose of common sense, he advised. Do not apply it directly to clothing or to the face.

“You don’t put DEET on and leave it on. You don’t keep reapplying it or sleep in it. After you had your exposure, it’s time to take a shower,” Hopkins warned. “If you notice an adverse reaction, wash it off immediately. Don’t let children apply it to themselves. Parents need to do it for them.

And don’t put it on their hands because hands inevitably end up in mouths.”

Long sleeves, preferably light in color, are also recommended.

The most effective preventative measure?

“Make sure you’re not breeding your own mosquitoes by allowing standing water on your property,” said Hopkins, explaining that standing water is the number one necessity for thirsty blood suckers to complete their life cycles.

Bill Lawrence, owner of Delta Pest Control in Pine Bluff, said the demand for his company’s mosquito control services has grown several times over since the first West Nile case was discovered. He’s become something of an aficionado on mosquitoes and the virus. He clips newspaper and magazine articles and scours professional trade magazines for anything to add to his arsenal of defense. It’s become almost a mission to him, he says.

“We’ve all fought mosquitoes for all of our lives in Southeast Arkansas,” he said. “The thing about it is, it used to be when we attended baseball games, we weren’t that worried about mosquitoes.

You would just use spray repellent on your arms and legs and go on.

Now, the next bite may get you infected. Anybody that spends any time outdoors, we feel like it’s a health hazard now.”

Standing water, Lawrence said, is the first thing his army of technicians look for when conducting an inspection. He’s found the pest-breeding-ingredient in a home’s stopped up gutters, small ditches between property lines, in birdbaths, around air-conditioning units, in a child’s wading pool and even under flower pots.

Jefferson County’s mosquito abatement program is headquartered out of the local state Health Department office. Administrator Tyrone Tidwell said trucks make nightly rounds to douse the county with a heavy chemical to kill the pests.

“With flood waters being so high, you’re going to see more mosquitoes,” Tidwell warned. “The biggest thing is personal protection. Use DEET. Wear light clothing and remove anything that could hold water.”

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