TOWN OF HUNTINGTON
Wet Weather Brings Hungry Pests
Abundant rainfall provides perfect breeding conditions for mosquitoes, West Nile virus
By Sara-Megan Walsh/swalsh@longislandernews.com

This past month’s unusual wet and rainy weather has left many feeling trapped indoors, eager to rush outside on the first sunny summer day. But now that those days are here, a different threat might keep them indoors.

“This is the time of year where we really start to see the adult mosquitoes coming out and biting,” said Dominick Ninvaggi, superintendent of Suffolk County Vector Control, in control of spraying. “It’s kind of ironic with the weather being rainy and keeping people indoors, people may not have noticed as much as they will when the rain finally stops.”

Ninivaggi said Long Islanders can expect to see more mosquitoes than average as the rainy, wet weather has created plenty of ideal breeding habitats. Long Island has received over 7.29 inches of rain over the past month, making it the second wettest June recorded since 1948, according to the Northeast Regional Climate Center at Cornell University, a partner of the National Climatic Data Center. Vector Control crews have been working overtime to monitor and spray potential mosquito breeding grounds, according to the superintendent.

“The reality is no mosquito control program is big enough to keep up with this amount of water over this large of an area. We do expect to see more mosquitoes,” Ninivaggi said.

The Suffolk County Vector Control Division is keeping a careful watch on approximately 1,000 areas known to be breeding grounds for the biting pests, ranging from water drainage systems to marsh lands on both private and public lands. One of the department’s greatest concerns, Ninivaggi said, is the Asian Tiger mosquito, “a very aggressive biter” first seen in the area last summer. He said they first appeared in the southern United States, spreading up the coast to become a problem in New Jersey and later New York City.

“If they get well established here, they will be the kind of mosquito that bites you day and night, creating a problem for most people,” Ninivaggi said.

The Suffolk County Department of Health issued a statement on June 19 encouraging residents to take action to reduce mosquito breeding locations around their home, including disposing of all empty water-holding containers, cleaning clogged roof gutters, turning over plastic waiting pools, wheelbarrows or similar objects when not in use, and keeping swimming pools clean and chlorinated.

“More than once, I’ve heard people complain we weren’t doing our job, then we’ve gone to their place and found they were producing their own mosquitoes,” said the head of Vector Control.

These mosquitoes can carry the potentially fatal West Nile virus, which has had over 39 cases in Suffolk County since 2001, with four fatalities. There were nine confirmed cases in Suffolk County last year, according to Dr. Humayun Chaudhry, Suffolk County Department of Health Commissioner.

“It turns out, birds, especially dying birds, can be one of your earliest signs West Nile virus is around,” Chaudhry said, noting that blue jays, crows and owls are among those most susceptible to the disease.

Residents who spot dead birds without any obvious signs of trauma, a possible sign of West Nile, are asked to report the sighting to the Department of Health Services’ at 631-787-2200 from 9 a.m. - 4 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Vector Control’s annual sprayings to further reduce the mosquito population and transmission of West Nile virus began on June 30 at Davis Park and O’ Point Woods on Fire Island. A spokesman said list of further dates and locations will be released shortly, but not by presstime.

“We’re not taking any chances, We’re assuming it’s out there. If you haven’t found them in the backyard already, you will shortly,” Chaudhry said. “People need to help us and make sure it becomes less of an issue in Suffolk County than it has been in the past.”