April showers don’t just bring May flowers; they also bring mosquitoes. Fortunately, the City of Victoria Parks & Recreation is ready to take on the pesky insects with its new integrated mosquito management program.
The program includes updated practices for spraying mosquitoes and placing larvicide. It also includes a new trapping program that will help with disease monitoring.
While the City has used larvicide in the past, the new program places greater emphasis on efficiently using larvicide to kill mosquitoes before they reach adulthood.
“We really want spraying to be the last resort,” Parks & Recreation Assistant Director Kimberly Zygmant explained. “We’re trying to kill them before they get big enough to bite.”
The department is updating the maps that it uses to guide its larvicide placement and mosquito spraying. The program also sets clear rainfall thresholds for both processes.
The new mosquito spraying map will be posted online at www.victoriatx.gov/parks. When the City makes announcements about mosquito spraying, residents will be able to view the map to find out when their neighborhoods will be treated.
One completely new feature of the program is the mosquito trapping effort. The City will work with the Department of State Health Services to trap mosquitoes and screen them for mosquito-borne viruses like the West Nile virus. If an illness is identified, the City will notify the public and treat the area appropriately.
Residents can do their part to fight the mosquitoes by treating or eliminating standing water on their own properties. Parks & Recreation offers these tips for residents:
- Remove or cover containers that could hold water.
- Fill in or drain puddles, ruts and tree hollows.
- Keep gutters and culverts clean so that rainwater can drain properly.
- Change the water in bird baths, wading pools, etc. at least once each week.
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