Fight the bite! That was the main message from Ken Nawolsky, superintendent of the Insect Control Branch, during his press conference yesterday to announce the commencement of the City’s insect control efforts. Despite a recent cold snap, warmer weather on the horizon means Winnipeggers can soon expect to be swatting away those nuisance mosquitoes on the regular.
Nawolsky said his branch has already started its larvicide program in the hopes of blunting the anticipated bug boom. “Our crews are working 16 hour days, our four helicopters are flying and we are thankful [for] the forecast for the next seven days, where they are not calling for any additional rainfall,” he told CBC News.
As always, the City is also encouraging residents to do their part: dump containers filled with water; drain eavestroughs; cover containers to prevent the accumulation of standing water; level off low-lying ground to eliminate areas where standing water can pool.
In other mosquito-fighting news, international researchers expanding on previous works looking at using coffee to control the bugs may have found a crucial bit of evidence that would make coffee an excellent larvicide. While their works focus on fighting species of mosquito not yet found in Manitoba—no doubt a relief to those who can’t get enough of the sweet, sweet Malathion—it does show great promise in the worldwide fight against the disease-carrying creature.