Mosquitoes Appear Early In Bay Area's Mixed Weather And They're Hungry
CONTRA COSTA COUNTY (KCBS)— Mosquitoes are making their presence felt in the Bay Area almost a month ahead of schedule. The mixed cold-to-warm-to cold again weather has some experts warning it could signal an early start to West Nile virus season.
"We're seeing a lot of mosquito activity earlier this year than in previous years and it's primarily weather driven," said entomologist John Washburn, the interim manager of the Alameda County Mosquito Abatement District.
Washburn said there's been a noticeable increase in service calls from people complaining about mosquitos.
Deborah Bass of the Contra Costa Mosquito & Vector Control District said the early appearance of mosquitos cannot be good.
"The cycle between the warmer weather and the wet weather certainly is a recipe for potentially a bad West Nile season," she said.
2014 was a bad year for mosquito-spread, West Nile virus. Nearly 800 human cases were reported in California. 29 people lost their lives, the most since 2004.