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Most of 2023 was below average for mosquito numbers. September is not likely to change that.
Lack of rain throughout August keeps mosquito numbers low and cold overnight temperatures in September will make them appear even less.
Every Monday night starting in mid-May through September, the Metropolitan Mosquito Control District sets out a variety of mosquito and black fly traps throughout the district and employs a network of sweep net collections done by employees and volunteers. Any insects collected are brought back to our lab on Tuesday to be identified throughout the week with maps published to show current mosquito and black fly activity.
There hasn't been any significant rainfall in the past month, which has brought most of the Twin Cities metro into severe drought conditions, with northeastern and southeastern parts of the state breaking into extreme or exceptional drought. That continues a pattern that has been occurring all summer and led to a below average year for mosquitoes. As we head into September with overnight temperatures approaching the below 50 degree Fahrenheit mark, the few mosquitoes that are around will begin to disappear for the year.
According to MMCD assistant entomologist Dr. Scott Larson, "The season is almost over and it looks like we aren’t going to get any late season broods. We could probably get a couple inches of rain across the whole District and not see any significant hatching. Temperatures are dropping too and soon if any mosquitoes hatch, they won’t have much heat to develop quickly."
Here are the mosquito trap counts from last Tuesday, September 5th:
Cooler weather could slow down West Nile virus transmission, but tests are still coming back positive.
Mosquitoes have tested positive for West Nile virus in every metro county this year, but the cooler weather could help slow down the positive samples that we are collecting. We will continue to provide updates here and on social media when new samples come back positive.
It's school presentation season!
It's back to school time which means it's a great time to schedule an interactive presentation with Mosquito Control! MMCD offers no cost school presentations that can be customized to fit your curriculum. Presentations are great for students in Grades 3-12th and can be offered both in-school or outside.
Visit our classroom presentations page for more information or reach out to Alex Carlson for more details!
