Aggressive mosquitoes invade Vermont
Orange county and aggressive mosquito, nsect experts want Orange County to stay alert for the Asian tiger mosquito, a pest with striking markings that could become a major nuisance — and spread unfamiliar disease. The mosquito was detected in El Monte earlier this month after leaving its calling card: daytime biting. Most mosquitoes bite at dawn or dusk. “If people get bitten during the day by a mosquito, we would like them to tell us,” said Michael Hearst of the Orange County Vector Control District. The mosquito has turned up in Orange County before — in 2001 and in 2004, both times in Orange — but was wiped out before it could get established. It has not been found here recently. But there’s a chance that the mosquito, with its unusual black and white color pattern, could turn up again. aggressive mosquitoes vermont, orange county and aggressive mosquito, Eastern equine encephalitis, +mosquito bite prevention,
The Asian tiger mosquito is known for spreading the virus that causes dengue fever, as well as a disease called chikungunya, said Anthony James, a UC Irvine microbiologist whose research involves genetically engineering mosquitoes to disrupt their breeding.
“If this mosquito were introduced into L.A., it would be a game-changer,” James said. “We would have vectors here capable of transmitting viruses that we don’t really see all the time.”
Public health isn’t the only concern.
“We really don’t have mosquito problems,” he said, largely because of the efforts of insect-control agencies.
“You can have a barbecue in the afternoon and not be covered in insect repellent. If this got established here,
we would have mosquitoes. It would represent a serious nuisance factor.”
The latest outbreak in El Monte could be an accidental arrival on luggage or by ship, he said, or it could have been brought in from the eastern U.S., where the species is established.
The mosquito also does not have to lay its eggs in water, but can lay them on vegetation just above the water line, Hearst said, to hatch when water rises. It should be easy for residents to identify.
“It’s a small mosquito, very aggressive during the day,” he said. “It’s very pretty — jet black wth white stripes. It’s a handsome mosquito, if you will.”
