MOSQUITO WARNING TO PEOPLE IN THE PEEL REGION

Mosquito operations officers have been monitoring larvae development and undertook an aerial larviciding treatment on November 28.  It is anticipated the treatment will significantly reduce the emergence of adult mosquitoes.

People in the Peel Region are encouraged to protect themselves from being bitten by mosquitoes by wearing long loose fitting clothing and applying insect repellents containing DEET or Picaridin, as well as avoiding periods of high mosquito activity.

The recent tides were 40cm to 50cm higher than predicted, at about one metre in the Peel Inlet, which has led to extensive inundation of the salt marshes around the estuary and rivers and therefore ideal conditions for extensive mosquito breeding.

Another concern of the PMMG is the emergence at this time of year of the summer saltmarsh mosquito, a smaller black mosquito called Aedes vigilax, which is a known transmitter of Ross River and Barmah Forest virus.

The Aedes vigilax species is particularly aggressive and is known to bite throughout the day rather than the usual periods around dawn and dusk.

Ross River and Barmah Forest virus are active in the Peel Region with human cases and isolations from mosquitoes being recorded by the Department of Health.

RELEASE ENDS

27 November 2008