Standing water provides prime breeding ground for mosquitoes
Forty nine mosquito pools and 10 chickens tested positive for the West Nile virus in the Coachella Valley as of late September. No human cases have been reported in the valley, but there were two cases in other parts of Riverside County. That’s a good statistic in comparison to other parts of the state. We asked Rod Chamberlain of the Coachella Valley Mosquito and Vector Control District if that could change.
“Now as we move into the monsoons and we have more moisture and a little bit more milder temperatures now we start to see the mosquitoes living longer and as such human transmission now and so we can’t be complacent here in the Coachella Valley just yet,” said Chamberlain.
Especially with standing water across the valley, a perfect place for the blood eating flies to breed.
“In order to get an infection the mosquito first has to bite a bird that’s already infected with West Nile and then in 10 to 20 days it can replicate and pass the West Nile Virus on to a human during a second blood feeding,” explained Chamberlain.
The only way to control that is to keep the adult mosquito population low and prevent breeding in 17,000 sites across the area.
We found a field technician sampling the standing water off the 10 eastbound next to the Bob Hope Drive exit and asked him if he found anything.
“Right now nothing usually when water is this wide open and there’s a lot a lot of vegetation, not a lot of debris, you won’t get breeding but since it’s been here for a while and conditions have been perfect for breeding we like to check everything we find,” said Patrick Miller of the Coachella Valley Mosquito and Vector Control District.
They encourage individuals to be observant as well. Call the Coachella Valley Mosquito and Vector Control District if you come across standing water you cannot get rid of yourself. Their number is (760) 342-8287and they will come out to your home free of charge.
