So much water lying around – and warm weather – the perfect conditions to breed Manitoba’s provincial bird – the mosquito!
The City of Brandon started its annual larviciding program this week targeting mosquito larvae before they hatch.
On its website, the city says the control of mosquitoes is important because it:
– reduces the nuisance effect of mosquitoes on the residents of Brandon and,
– reduces the possibility of mosquitoes serving as vectors for diseases such as Western Equine Encephalitis and West Nile Virus.
City of Brandon Parks & Recreation staff monitor a control area of 102 square miles (264 sq. km) surrounding the city. The control area is rectangular in shape with the western boundary of Kemnay, the southern boundary at the Brandon Gun Club, the eastern boundary at 49th Street East, and the northern boundary at the Brandon Municipal Airport.
The program relies largely on larval control methods, with standing pools of water closely monitored and then treated with larvicide based on an average of samples in a particular area of standing water.
However, Ultra Low Volume adult mosquito control (fogging) is provided for IF: the City of Brandon’s Adulticiding Factor Analysis Guidelines value falls into and remains in the high category for two consecutive trap counts; OR the average of any daily mosquito trap count is more than 1,000 nuisance mosquitoes; OR if any individual trap count is more than 2,000 nuisance mosquitoes.
Trap counts are not yet available on the city’s website at https://brandon.ca/mosquito-abatement/mosquito-abatement-program
