Mosquito Madness here’s what you can do

With the sheer number of mosquitoes, it’s really difficult to avoid them if at all. But why have there been so many? Dr. Mohammed El Damir, shared his ideas as to why mosquitoes have been a real nuisance.

“They’re really resilient. These species can stay in the egg as much as long as five years waiting for right condition” El Damir said. “So these mosquitoes, if it is drought, they’re not going to die. They’re just waiting for the right opportunity now. We had a lot of snow. Then lots of standing water. Then they start to show up in a big number”

El Damir said that from the long winter all that melted snow has made it the perfect breeding ground for mosquitoes. However, these standing waters could range anywhere from rain gutters, to containers left out in the rain. In fact it only takes .5 inches of water for mosquitoes to lay their eggs, and hatch into larva.

However, there are different times to when mosquitoes are the most active during the day. El Damir said knowing when to be outside can impact how many bites you could get. “I learned from the hard way to not be outside during the dawn or during the dusk.” El Damir said. “Why? Because 30 minutes before the sun goes up and 30 minutes before the sun goes down mosquitoes are the most active. And if you happen to be there, probably you’re going to end up with a lot of bites.”

There are alternative methods for repelling the ridiculous number of mosquitoes instead of bug sprays and insecticides. Some of the different methods are Citronella candles, essential oils, or Lavender scented candles. However, El Damir said these aren’t as effective. “They could, you know, give you some relief, like ten, 20% relief. But you still have to mess with that 80% of the other mosquito, you know what I mean?” El Damir said. “So that scent maybe helped some, but it’s not going to be the answer.”

The most effective means of repelling mosquitoes is to use DEET bug repellent on exposed areas of your skin. However, if you are heading into deep woods or outside for a long time you should use Permethrin on your clothes or your tent. Although you should avoid spraying Permethrin directly on your skin.

For more information on how to deal with mosquitoes you can look here. For other stories of the outdoors you can read more here.