“The recent heat has been perfect for mosquitoes to develop quickly and spread the virus,” stated District Manager Cei Kratz. “Mosquitoes only take five days to develop from egg to adult, and standing water turns green in no time.”
The District contracted with an aerial surveillance company to take pictures of the area last month, and officials identified 1,000 swimming pools that looked suspicious. Teams are following up to make sure property owners either maintain or drain pools to avoid creating mosquito habitats, according to the District.
Residents should remove stagnant water from around their yards, since that’s where mosquitoes lay eggs. Birdbaths, water fountains, small toys or trash bags left outside may retain water from sprinklers, making them a potential mosquito source, officials said.
The California Department of Public Health as of July 7 reported that 51 dead birds, 490 mosquito samples, and two sentinel chickens (not including the ones in Lancaster and Palmdale) have tested positive for West Nile Virus. Three human cases of West Nile Virus were reported in the Los Angeles, Kern, and Kings counties, according to the California Department of Public Health.
The AVMVCD is seeking the public’s help in tracking down any occurrences of invasive mosquitoes, such as Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus, in the Antelope Valley. These mosquitoes transmit diseases like Zika virus and Dengue fever and have already been found in Southern California and the Central Valley – as close as the San Fernando Valley.
The District urges residents to report mosquitoes that bite during the day so authorities can conduct follow up surveillance to find possible infestations.
Authorities are urging residents to follow these tips to avoid getting mosquito bites and West Nile virus infection:
- Check your property for any standing water from sprinklers or thunder showers, and dump or drain all standing water.
- Keep swimming pools maintained or completely dry.
- Dress in light-colored long-sleeved clothes during mosquito activity. Mosquitoes are most active at dusk and dawn.
- Defend against mosquitoes by use repellents (i.e., DEET, Picaridin, oil of lemon eucalyptus, IR3535).
- Keep screen doors and windows in good repair and close them.
- Turn on fans to keep mosquitoes away.
- Don’t use bug zappers near your patio – they attract more mosquitoes than they kill.
- Vaccinate your horses properly.
- Report stagnant pools and other backyard sources to the AVMVCD at 661-942-2917.
- Report dead birds by calling 1-877-WNV-BIRD (877-968-2473) or online at www.westnile.ca.gov.
To stay up-to-date on West Nile Virus activity and mosquito-related information in the Antelope Valley, visit www.avmosquito.org or contact the Antelope Valley Mosquito & Vector Control District at 661-942-2917.
[Information via news release from the Antelope Valley Mosquito & Vector Control District.]
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No Valley Fever says
The bigger killer in the AV is Valley Fever. There will be a Valley Fever Walk and Awareness event on Saturday the 12th of August from 8 am to Noon at Apollo Park. It is being hosted by the AV Dust Control Group. They have information about a very real threat to all AV residents. The dirty little secret of Rex’s solar farms is no longer a secret.
A Boy Named Sue says
Here comes another Rex lawsuit in 3….2…1…..
Tim Scott says
I can’t help myself. I always laugh when I see “sentinel chickens.”
William says
Can they still be ‘free range’ chickens if they are also sentinels?
Debra says
Are they maintaining Palmdale lake (fin and feather) and Apollo lakes, since some of the chickens were found in Lancaster and Palmdale
KevinRS says
Palmdale and Apollo lakes shouldn’t be an issue. Mosquitos need still water, and those lakes are too big, just wind stirs them up too much. If there was a section overgrown with reeds, that might be different. Also, in a stocked fishing lake, the fish would eat any mosquito larvae.
The problem is everything from unmaintained swimming pools(whether full or having just a bit of water sitting in the drain) down to a kids toy cup sitting where it can collect water from a sprinkler.
There are a LOT of swimming pools out there, just within blocks of the 50th and N flock, there are hundreds of pools. without counting, it looks like around half of all the houses near there have pools. On google earth, with a picture from April, the colors vary, from light blue, to dark blue, and to some that are green, and some that are hard to tell from lawns. That’s why the district contracted aerial photos, so they can then go door to door, letting people know the issue, treating pools, and identifying foreclosed or abandoned houses with pools they are going to have to keep coming back to.
They also need people to report issues they see, which is why the phone number is posted in articles.
Nathan says
How about taking care of lake elizabeth and lake Hughes? You are worried about swimming pools. Have you not seen the breeding environments those lakes are? With the lack of water, its a cesspool.
AV Mosquito says
Nathan –
Lake Hughes and Lake Elizabeth are outside of our district boundaries. The residents there are not paying the tax assessment for our services, so we can’t go there on a regular basis. We are also not equipped to deal with a lake of that size.
It might help, if the people in charge of the lakes were able to get the algae and weeds out of there and put fish in it. They should be able to eat the mosquito larvae that develop in there. I don’t know who to contact about that, since I don’t live there.
Your best bet for now is to wear mosquito repellent when you are outside at dusk and dawn and make sure the screens on your windows and doors are in good repair. Also try not to use outdoor lighting, since that will attract mosquitoes and other insects.
For more information about us, check out http://www.avmosquito.org/about-us.html