West Nile Virus Information
August is considered a peak month for mosquito activity in North Texas. Not to worry, though. You can reduce your exposure to the diseases they may carry by taking some simple, commonsense precautions to avoid mosquito bites.
Adult flying mosquitoes frequently rest in grass, shrubbery or other foliage — anywhere it’s cool. It is the young mosquitoes that need standing water to develop. Remember, mosquitoes lay eggs in any water that stands more than four days.
Eliminating places where mosquitoes can lay eggs is the best way to control the pests.
To stop the spread of mosquitoes around your home and yard:
• Get rid of old tires, buckets or any containers that hold standing water, or empty them regularly.
• Empty plastic wading pools weekly and store them indoors or upside down when they’re not in use.
• Repair leaky pipes and outside faucets.
• Move water-cooler drain hoses frequently.
• Change water in birdbaths and scrub them twice a week.
• Empty pets’ watering pans daily.
• Clean clogged roof gutters.
• Treat standing water that can’t be drained with Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis (Bti). Bti is available at most hardware or garden stores.
Although most mosquitoes are merely nuisances, some do carry diseases such as West Nile virus or other varieties of encephalitis that they get from infected animals.
To prevent mosquito bites, which is how mosquito-borne diseases are spread, you should:
• Stay indoors at dusk and dawn, when infected mosquitoes are most active.
• Dress in long sleeves and pants when you’re outside.
• Use insect repellent that contains DEET (N, N-diethyl-m-toluamide).
• Drain standing water in your yard and around your house.
Source: www.fortworthgov.org