Mosquito that can carry Zika virus turns up near Isleton, vector district officials say
The mosquito that can carry the Zika virus has been spotted this week in yet another area of Sacramento County, this time in Isleton, according to a report Thursday from the Sacramento-Yolo Mosquito and Vector Control District.
The invasive Aedes aegypti bite during the day and lay eggs just above the water line in containers that hold relatively little water such as pet dishes, bird baths and the saucers beneath flower pots.
Locally, vector district officials also have reported detecting them in Arden Arcade and Winters.
“Upon the first detection of the season, we enhanced our ongoing surveillance efforts in both counties and these resulted in additional findings of invasive mosquitoes,” said Gary Goodman, the district manager.
Those efforts include door-to-door inspections to identify breeding sites ,talking to neighborhood residents about preventive measures they can take and spraying for the mosquitoes in the early morning hours, Goodman said.
“Once these mosquitoes are established, they can be very difficult to control, especially because they can easily spread from one location to another,” added Goodman. “Since mosquitoes can hatch at different intervals, treatments need to be ongoing and repeated often to ensure populations are suppressed before they can continue reproducing. We hope that as temperatures get cooler we will also see a decline in the overall mosquito populations.”
The Aedes aegypti mosquito can carry not only the Zika virus but also yellow fever, dengue and chikungunya. However, public health officials have reported no mosquito-born transmission of Zika, chikungunya or dengue in California.
Babies infected with the Zika virus while in the womb have developed microcephaly, or a small head, as a result, according to reports from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. When the illness occurs later in pregnancy, there is risk of premature birth or miscarriage. It may take up to a year before congenital defects are recognizable in newborns.
Not everyone who gets Zika virus will get symptoms, and the disease can remain active in semen long after men have recovered from the disease. Consequently, the CDC notes that it can be transmitted by men who look healthy.
Both dengue fever and chikungunya are quite serious illnesses. While chikungunya is not fatal, it may cause debilitating bone and joint pain that can last months to years.
Want to protect yourself against bites and reduce areas where these pests can breed? Here’s what medical and vector control experts recommend:
▪ Mosquitoes can breed in overflow dishes under flower pots, pet dishes and bird baths, tin cans, tires and other water-holding vessels as small as bottle caps. Clean yard fixtures regularly and dispose of refuse.
▪ Remove any standing water from your property.
▪ If you need help identifying where mosquitoes are breeding, call your local vector control district for assistance.
▪ Apply repellents containing federally approved ingredients such as DEET, picaridin, oil of lemon eucalyptus or IR3535 on your skin or clothing.
▪ Wear long sleeve shirts, long pants, socks and shoes outdoors.
▪ Check window and door screens to be sure there are no holes or gaps that a mosquito could use to enter your home.
Local residents should also note that other species of mosquitoes carry and transmit the West Nile virus, and the California Department of Public Health reported 123 people have had symptomatic infections with the disease around the state, including four in Butte, one in El Dorado, one in Placer, one in Sacramento, one in Sutter and two in Yolo counties.
West Nile virus can cause high fever, headaches and muscle weakness, neck stiffness, stupor, disorientation, coma, tremors, convulsions and muscle weakness. Public health officials say at least five individuals have died from West Nile this year.
Sacramento-Yolo district officials noted that their West Nile surveillance has nearly come to an end this season because testing has not yielded new samples of mosquitoes carrying the disease. Consequently, they are focusing on invasive mosquitoes.
