HAM LAKE, Minn. — Have mosquitoes been 'bugging' you more this year?
It seems like there's been more mosquitoes than ever, but according to the Metropolitan Mosquito Control District (MMCD), the data tells a different story.
"June started off a little higher than normal, but compared to the 10-year average, the season so far has been very normal," field operations supervisor Josh Madetzke says.
The perceived uptick in mosquitoes this year may just be the result of people spending more time outside this summer.
“People are home a lot more and they’re spending more time outside,” Madetzke says.
MMCD crews have been out several times this summer to take samples from local wetlands.
Madetzke says some areas are seeing higher mosquito populations than others, but overall, he says the numbers this year are pretty average.
However, that could change with a little bit of rain.
“That’s why we’re out here right now, the rain we saw this week,” Madetzke says.
The most recent samples that were taken on Wednesday suggest a new crop of mosquitoes may be hatching soon.
Madetzke says that’s why he and his crew were called to Anoka County this week to fill helicopters with specially designed granules that can be dropped into local wetlands.
“These granules are basically corn cob bits that are treated with a bacterium that kills mosquitoes,” Madetzke explains. “It’s harmless to humans, but it gets into the mosquitoes when they’re in that larva stage.”
Madetzke says each helicopter load can cover about 180 acres of swamps and wetlands.
His crew in Anoka County has been tasked with covering over 1,900 acres this week.
MMCD has five other helicopters that will be out dropping granules in the coming weeks.
Madetzke says right now the season is looking pretty average, but that can change quickly if they get any more rain.
“Historically we’ve seen that May and June, the earlier Spring months, are typically the worst for mosquitoes, but the last few years we’ve seen a lot more activity in July and August,” Madetzke says.
“We’ve seen mosquitoes well into September at times. It all depends on the rain.”
One piece of good news this summer is that field crews have yet to find a mosquito that was carrying the West Nile Virus.
So far, Madetzke says every sample that has been sent to the lab has tested negative for West Nile.
In a normal year he says MMCD sees a handful of positive samples.
He says seeing no positive samples this late into this season is a good sign.