(5/5/99)

As if all the rain over the past month weren't enough, wait until you find out what's going to hit us in two weeks. Science Specialist Ed Yeates tells us what to watch out for.

All this rain has filled every flower pot, every bog, every nook and cranny throughout the Wasatch Front. So now, the mosquito forecasters are predicting a feeding frenzy in two weeks.

This past cycle of rain, rain and more rain followed by a what could be a warming trend is exactly what mosquitos love.

Where it was dry before with only a few hot spots - now thousands of acres are saturated.

Dr. Sam Dickson, of SLC Mosquito Abatement says, "Then all of a sudden we went from virtually no mosquito sources to almost every mosquito source we have, which are literally thousands of them which now have mosquito larvae developing in them."

Abatement crews are already out spraying bogs and wetlands - but the increased breeding ground this year could be growing a much larger and hungrier army.

Dr. Dickson predicts, "As soon as it turns warm within the next few days, we're going to see the first adults pop out of the water and start to look for a blood meal. In the next two to three weeks, we're going to see mosquitos moving into the city."

The native biters will be out in force, but so will our import - the tree hole mosquito which lays its eggs in tree rot holes and hollows filled with water.

Salt Lake Mosquito Abatement in past years has already marked 1200 backyard and street trees for treatment. But this year, treating marked trees may not be enough.

Dr. Dickson says, "The tree hole mosquito also transmits dog heartworm. If you live in an area which has mature trees-- maples in particular, Box Elders-- those will have tree holes in them and probably have the mosquito in them."