Rain and mosquitoes

With all of the rain that we have received lately and more on the way, it's understandable for people to be concerned about mosquitoes.  I'm not going to rehash everything here in this post, but I will direct you to past posts on mosquito topics.

I do want to let people know of floodwater mosquitoes which are different from our normal culprits.  I usually get the statement of the "huge mosquito" or a "mosquito that REALLY hurts when it bites" or a "mosquito that tried to carry them away".  These are the floodwater mosquitoes that come out after we have heavy rains.  These mosquitoes lay their eggs in areas that water will reach during flooding conditions (or heavy rainfall).  Fortunately, they can also be repelled with mosquito repellent.  The EPA has a site that can help you choose a mosquito repellent here.

As for other mosquito information, remember the following:

1. Stay indoors during peak mosquito hours*- dawn & dusk
   1. *please note that some Aedes mosquitoes are day time feeders while some Culex are night time feeders in addition to being active at dusk and dawn, so precaution should be taken whenever outside
2. Eliminate standing water
   1. Dispose of old tires or cover them with a tarp to keep off rain
   2. Clean out gutters and downspouts
   3. Bird baths, pet water dishes, etc. should be emptied and refilled twice a week
   4. Store containers so they do not hold water
3. Keep grass mowed to a proper length & vegetation trimmed (mosquitoes like to rest in thick vegetation)
4. Repair leaky faucets or A/C lines that produce condensate
5. In permanent standing water areas, use things like mosquito fish or Bt israelensis (dunks)
6. Keep window screens in good repair
7. Use repellents when going outside (follow label instructions).

For mosquito & mosquito disease information see this page for more information:
http://urban-ipm.blogspot.com/2016/07/mosquito-and-mosquito-disease.html

For information about heartworms (transmitted to pets by mosquitoes) see this page:
http://urban-ipm.blogspot.com/2017/08/heartworms.html

Where do bugs go when it rains?

It's raining!  Wait.  Let me repeat that. IT'S RAINING!!!!

Since it's a rainy day here in Central Texas, I decided to answer a question I often get when I speak to children about insects.  Where do they go when it rains?  If you want to know what they do when it gets cold, see this post.

We all know that insects don't carry around umbrellas to protect themselves from the rain, but should they?  It often depends on the insect's size and the heaviness of the rainfall.  Obviously, the heavier the rainfall, the more difficult it would be for insects to fly.  Some insects are capable of flying during rainfall and can withstand direct hits from raindrops (see this post from Scientific American on researchers bombarding mosquitoes with raindrops).  Other insects do not fare so well so they tend to hide.  Hiding in protected places such as under leaves, leaf litter on the ground, under rocks or logs, cracks, crevices, under the eaves of buildings.