Created on Thursday, 02 April 2009 15:05
Contact: Collette DuValle, 317-373-2391
April Showers, Warming Temperatures Means It’s Mosquito Season
April showers bring more than May flowers, they also bring the unofficial beginning of mosquito season in Central Indiana. The Marion County Health Department’s Mosquito Control program is ready to resume its monitoring of areas known to be mosquito breeding sites and looking for new sites.
The Marion County Health Department set several records during the 2008 mosquito season. Records were set for the number of sites treated for larvae and the number of complaint calls for the month of October. On top of the records, mosquito control officials said mosquitoes were biting into October, longer than any other season in recent memory.
Health department technicians investigated 10,117 larvae sites in 2008, compared to the previous high of 10,052 set in 2001.
“We’re ready and each year we learn something new that can be used in the year ahead, this year is no different,” said Chuck Dulla, administrator, mosquito control.
Marion County maintains one of the preminent mosquito control programs in the nation. A veteran staff that includes Dulla, Jim Erwin, Rick Mack, Terry Gallagher, Larry Lobdell and Michael Ellyson provides a strong foundation that understands the variables influencing mosquito activity. This group also understands the significance of preparation.
In planning for the 2009 mosquito season, staff members have been testing mosquitoes for resistance to chemicals being used in the field now, and testing new products for potential future use.
“What makes me most proud of my hard working staff is that they are always looking for new and innovative ways to effectively and efficiently control mosquitoes in Marion County,” said Dulla.
Mosquito season in Marion County historically peaks in September and ends with the second hard frost of the year, usually in mid-October.
For information about the Marion County Health Department’s Mosquito Control program, please call 221-7440.
