Have you noticed more mosquitoes in the Sacramento area this winter? While it’s far from peak mosquito season, experts say recent warmer temperatures may have increased their activity.<\/p>\n
For Nala and Brandon Thompson, the nice weather means one thing: a long walk along the levee in West Sacramento.<\/p>\n
“I don’t go out in the evenings because that’s when I do see them,” Brandon Thompson said.<\/p>\n
Thompson is talking about mosquitoes, a nuisance he usually sees during the warmer months. But for now, he and Nala have been lucky not to see any on their winter walks.<\/p>\n
“I live right over there by the river. I haven’t really seen one, but ironically, now that you ask, my daughter killed one along the sliding glass door, but that’s really the only one we’ve seen,” Brandon Thompson said.<\/p>\n
But according to the Sacramento-Yolo Mosquito Vector Control District, they’ve seen a slight uptick in calls about the pests. And while they’re typically not active this time of year, warmer temperatures this winter may have woken some up, but just briefly.<\/p>\n
“These are mosquitoes that have been hibernating during the winter, and the warmer weather has definitely gotten them out of their hibernation,” said Luz Maria Robles with vector control.<\/p>\n
However, officials say these are likely not the kind of mosquitoes that carry dangerous diseases, unlike the varieties that come out in spring and summer.<\/p>\n
“As people are spending more time outdoors, it’s sunny,” Maria Robles said. “People are definitely taking notice of them.”<\/p>\n
Mosquito activity is highly dependent on the weather, and with a chance of rain next week, Robles said activity should drop off again.<\/p>\n
But that doesn’t mean crews at vector control are letting their guard down. Crews are raising thousands of mosquito-eating fish, born in large ponds, then moved into containers before being released into bodies of water, where they will feed on mosquito larvae to help keep populations in check.<\/p>\n
When it comes to this “early season” activity, officials say it’s nothing out of the ordinary and it won’t last.<\/p>\n
“The mosquitoes are not worse than other years,” Maria Robles said. “It’s just something we see every year.”<\/p>\n
As we get closer to spring and then summer, Brandon Thompson knows it won’t be long before mosquitoes make a comeback, but at least Nala Thompson helps him spot them.<\/p>\n
“You see them flying around, and they’re easy to spot on my white dog,” Brandon Thompson said. “I just swat them, but yeah, I don’t go out in the summer.”<\/p>\n