GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) — Mosquitoes are causing quite the itchy situation near standing water in Northeast Wisconsin.
PJ Liesch is a UW-extension entomologist and says the mosquitoes came in quickly following heavy rain earlier this month.
“When we have dry conditions like we did back in June, there not many mosquitoes out there. Fast forward to today, in the last two weeks or so Wisconsin has finally gotten some much needed rain,” Liesch told WTAQ. “Often when you get a heavy rain storm, if it is during the summer months, and temperatures are pretty warm, within about a week and a half to 2 weeks you tend to often see an increase in mosquito numbers.”
The heavy rain creates standing water, which is where mosquitoes like to breed. The high number of mosquitoes in the area have led to concerns about mosquito-borne illness.
“Perhaps the best known one here in Wisconsin would be West Nile Virus,” said Liesch. “Although it’s actually been a very very quiet year on that front.”
No cases of West Nile Virus have been reported in the state so far this year. In a bad year, Liesch says, Wisconsin can see 40 to 60 cases of West Nile a year.
Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE), which is also mosquito borne, has been reported previously in the state and can be fatal. A horse in Calumet County tested positive for that virus over the weekend. Last year, two cases of EEE were reported in the state, one of those cases wound up being fatal.
There are ways to protect yourself. Liesch says to make sure to drain all standing water off of your property and use mosquito repellent to keep the bugs away. Another, more unusual method, involves keeping a fan pointed at yourself.
“With their small body mass, mosquitoes are not particularly strong fliers against the wind,” says Liesch. “If you have a fan blowing at you, that’s going to make it very hard for a mosquito to fly at you and land on you and stay stationary long enough to feed on you.”
Longer clothing will also mitigate the itchy consequences of mosquito bites.
The Brown County Health Department says that 44 cases of mosquito borne illnesses are reported to public health departments, on average, every year in Wisconsin, but add that many illnesses are mild and go undiagnosed, so it’s likely the number is higher.
