(Radio Iowa) – As we enter summer Iowa has yet to see much mosquito activity. Iowa State University professor Ryan Smith leads the state mosquito surveillance program and says there are some mosquitoes out there. “So far this year, we’ve yet to see those big boom of some of those nuisance or biting mosquitoes that usually occurs at this time sometime in June or early July,” he says.
We’ve seen more rain recently, but Smith says mosquitoes need standing water to flourish. “Without that, they don’t have a place to, more or less complete their early development. And a lot of the mosquitoes that we tend to see in really high number are known as floodwater mosquitoes,” he says, “and so without those kind of flooding like events that without having those, we’re not getting mosquito eggs to hatch out or to fully utilize the standing water.”
Warmer weather can also help mosquitoes develop. “With warmer temperatures, to some extent, once you get to a certain point, it can be negative. But with consistent warm temperatures, it allows for mosquitoes to develop at a faster rate. And so usually probably the ideal temperature is going to be around like 85,” he says. Smith says that’s why we often see more mosquitoes at the end of June and into July.
“At this point of the year the temperature’s going to hold up and so usually that’s kind of the thing that tends to initiate or really start the season,” Smith says. Smith says you should continue to be aware of the conditions as you spend more time outside. “They’re definitely out, take some precautions if you are going to be in a place that might have some mosquitoes,” he says. “But at least right now it’s not too bad yet.”
Smith’s lab traps and identifies more than 100-thousand mosquitoes each year.
