Agency offers help in eradicating mosquitoes

Public invited to info sessions

Mosquitoes can be far more than just unwanted guests at a barbecue. The tiny bloodsuckers can carry diseases and parasites.

Earlier this year, Shelby County Health Department officials recorded a spike in the number of f loodwater mosquitoes, which transmit the dog heartworm parasite.

“The problem is that ...it was cool and wet outside. The floodwater mosquito likes these conditions, so it thrived earlier this year,” said Ture Carlson, entomologist with the Vector Control Program of the Health Department.

As the weather gets hotter and drier, other species can carry diseases such as West Nile and St. Louis encephalitis.

This week is National Mosquito Control Awareness Week, and the Health Department’s Vector Control Program, which battles mosquito and rat infestations in the county, is holding informational sessions on the insects.

Two will be held Thursday: one from 10 to 11 a.m. at the Goodwill Homes Senior Center at 163 W. Raines and another from 12:20 to 2 p.m. at the City University School of Liberal Arts at 1500 Dunn.

During the winter, employees of Vector Control work to destroy breeding grounds for mosquitoes, usually by removing tree limbs, trash and other debris clogging waterways.

This time of year, Vector Control workers collect a small fish called gambusia that is so effective at eating large amounts of mosquito larvae it’s known as “mosquitofish.”

Residents can pick up free gambusia from Vector Control at 2480 Central to use in decorative ponds and nonfunctioning swimming pools. People interested should call 901-2229715 to ensure the fish are in stock, and should bring a container, such as a gallon-size plastic bag, when picking up the fish.

Vector Control also uses larvicide, spraying naturally occurring bacteria onto standing water to kill newly hatched mosquitoes. A final method involves killing adult mosquitoes by using trucks to spray a mixture of the EPA-approved insecticide permethrin and mineral oil.