WINNIPEG — The fight against the bite is on and in full force.
Heavy storms and rain are bringing more mosquitoes out and there are more still to come.
“Those mosquitoes are now emerging. From egg, to larvae to adult in as little as four to seven days where as normally it’s about two weeks when conditions are normal,” said Taz Stuart, pest control specialist at Poulin’s Pest Control Services. “Right now, because of all the weather systems that have come through, you have lots of rain in those very intense storms.”
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These skeeters are bringing with them a stronger, more painful bite.
“It’s nuisance mosquitoes out there, Aedes vexan. You’re feeling them because they are very strong biters ,” said Stuart.
The reason for the pain is that the mosquito’s proboscis is marked with little barbs.
“It’s like a little drill bit,” he said. “Her teeth, are little cutters that go into your skin. They are a little sharper, so when it starts going through the dermis… Boom, you’re going to feel that ouch.”
Yet it’s unclear if the city will be able to use its expired stock of malathion after Health Canada raised concerns last month.
READ MORE: Winnipeg will not be using malathion to fog mosquitoes until further notice
Health Canada told the City of Winnipeg to stop using its stock of malathion to fog for nuisance mosquitoes because the chemical is too old.
When fogging trucks sprayed the chemical in June, they used insecticide that was at least 13 years old.
The city bought the chemical from Saskatchewan in 2003, and the label states it shouldn’t be used after one year.
READ MORE: Daily mosquito trap counts for the City of Winnipeg
Health Canada’s Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) has now told the city they will not object to use of its current malathion stock but it must meet certain criteria.
While the city refused an on-camera interview with Global News they did provide the following statement:
“The City of Winnipeg had our current malathion stock tested for isomalathion. We’ve received the results and have forwarded them to the Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) to review and interpret. We will continue to work closely with the PMRA as this process moves forward.”
Stuart said right now what Manitobans should be concerned about is the Culex Tarsalis mosquitoes. Those are in their prime and have the potential to carry the West Nile Virus.
The highest risk period is when that infected mosquito population is at its greatest which is typically until the end of August.
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