DALLAS — The pesky little buggers are all the buzz and even more the bite.
“The female mosquito is the one that takes the bite,” said Christian Grisales, Dallas County Health Department Public Information Officer.
This season, mosquitoes have already been active. Grisales said the Health Department’s mosquito team has been spraying mosquitoes throughout the county.
“Most people think that mosquito activity is high when it rains. It actually…it happens when it’s super dry, very dry,” said Grisales.
In other words, it is only going to get worse as we move into summer.
“That’s when they breed the most and that’s when they’re multiplying and affecting many people out in the community,” said Grisales.
Spraying and testing for mosquitoes was a daily routine last year as more than 200 mosquito traps tested positive for West Nile Virus.
“We had over 20 cases, West Nile human cases and two deaths, so that means it affected a lot of people,” said Grisales.
He said mosquito activity is constantly changing. Last week, the City of DeSoto had an area that tested positive for West Nile. Two other areas in Mesquite and Irving just tested positive this week.
"We need to think about children, of course, because when we go out to a park, kids might not be aware of mosquito activity as adults are," Grisales said. "That’s why we need to do everything we can including wearing long-sleeved clothing, putting on some repellent, limiting outdoor activity and draining all standing water, specifically when it rains."
The health department offers free repellent during the mosquito season which lasts until about November. Updates on the ZIP codes that test positive for West Nile Virus are provided on the county’s website. Click here.