Edmonton mosquito population to remain ‘relatively low,’ despite recent moisture: city

Mosquitoes will soon be buzzing about and as Edmonton has seen more moisture this year, they will likely be worse than last year. Curtis Goodrum reports.

Don’t get out the repellents quite yet.

City of Edmonton biological science technician Mike Jenkins says despite a fair amount of snowfall over the winter, the city isn’t starting the spring season with high rates of mosquitoes.

“There’s more water on the ground than we’ve seen in several years … so we are seeing more water, more hatching than we’ve seen in a couple of years, but it’s still relatively low for the Edmonton area, so we’re not expecting a huge amount of spring-population mosquitoes,” he said in an interview Tuesday.

That’s because Edmonton is coming off some of the driest springs in recent years, so moisture-loving bloodsuckers haven’t had a chance to hatch.

“What happens later in the summer is going to depend entirely on precipitation,” he added. “If we get a lot of rainfall, that turns into more mosquitoes. If we don’t get rain, we get no mosquitoes.”

But Edmonton’s windy spring days could worsen the number of bites you get this year.

Nightly gusts can carry mosquitoes from outside control areas and into the city. Many of Edmonton’s spring species, however, are “daytime biters.”

“They’re flying mostly by day to avoid those cold nights … But then we have other species where just the development of the species depends a lot on temperature, so the hotter it gets over the summer, the more those species ramp up, the higher their metabolism, the more they’re able to get through their life cycle,” Jenkins said.

Mosquito types in Edmonton

Last year, Edmonton’s lack of mosquitoes was made up for in greater variety. This year, he says, the typical culprits – ankle-biting aedes vexans and the water-loving culex pipiens – are going to be on the summer docket.

Aedes vexans are perhaps the species Edmontonians most closely associate with summertime mosquitoes, as they enjoy a dusk or dawn bite that goes unnoticed until you’re already itching.

Culex pipiens have been moving into the city over the course of the last six years and often hatch in temporary bodies of water. They develop in storm water catch basins underneath street drains and enjoy a good outdoor fountain.

With development in and around the city, too, new ditches mean new breeding grounds for mosquitoes, Jenkins added. Anthony Henday Drive in particular is a “primary mosquito habitat in the Edmonton area.”

The culex pipiens species, however, is largely ornithophilic – meaning it prefers to feed on birds.

“So although we’ve seen a lot of those mosquitoes in our traps, it hasn’t translated into a lot of biting for humans. It’s probably terrible for the birds right now, they’re wondering what’s going on in Edmonton.”

How to avoid mosquitoes

Jenkins recommends making sure bird baths, old tires, playground equipment or anything else collecting temporary water is cleaned out in order to reduce potential mosquito habitats. Clearing tall bushes and grass may also provide some refuge.

The best way to keep them from joining you on your patio, however, is using an oscillating fan to keep them from landing, he says.

More information on the City of Edmonton’s mosquito program can be found on the city’s website.

With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Darcy Seaton