Nonnative yellow fever mosquito found in Roseville

The past few weeks, Roseville residents near the Citrus Height border have seen several Placer Mosquito and Vector Control District trucks working daily in the neighborhood. That's because the Placer Mosquito and Vector Control District found an invasive (nonnative) Aedes aegypti mosquito Aug. 28 on Bryan Avenue. Subsequently, district employees have gone door to door between Livotti Avenue and Whyte Avenue inspecting for mosquitoes and their larvae and leaving mosquito traps. As of Tuesday, the district placed 20 traps in moving locations and conducted 289 inspections in the area where the Aedes aegypti was detected, according to district staff. As of Monday, one more Aedes aegypti mosquito was found near the Citrus Heights border, said Placer Mosquito and Vector Control District general manager Joel Buettner, on the Placer County side. This mosquito is also known as the yellow fever mosquito. Small and dark with a white violin-shaped marking on its body, Aedes aegypti can transmit several viruses, including Zika, dengue, chikungunya and yellow fever. "Right now, we're treating it as an infestation in this area, which merges with Citrus Heights," Buettner said. "What we're doing is trying to find how far this infestation goes. We're doing a lot of trapping from the RV place off of Orlando Avenue all the way to Sunrise to Placer County/Sacramento. We're going day by day and being methodical. It takes time. Our largest perimeter is that area because detections were found close to Bryan and Whyte (avenues)." Placer Mosquito and Vector Control District is working with Sacramento-Yolo Mosquito and Vector Control District since the species was found near the county border. The effort is expected to through October. " Any new mosquito that can carry disease is a big concern," Buettner said. "Diseases aren't being spread now but it's a big deal." The mosquito species "is moving this way this year" to Stanislaus, San Joaquin, Placer and Sacramento counties, according to Buettner. The first detection of the Aedes aegypti was detected in Fresno, Madera and San Mateo counties in 2013, according to Placer Mosquito and Vector Control District public information officer Meagan Luevano. For the past three years, Placer Mosquito and Vector Control District has trapped throughout the county in anticipation of the invasive species coming here. Residents can help the mosquito control district by allowing district employees to do backyard inspections and, if necessary, place traps. "We look for larvae, which is very important because, if we have multiple life stages, they've been there awhile," Buettner said. "This season, we're looking through the end of October doing this. Hopefully when temperatures get cool (this particular kind of species tends to be tropical); the adult stage is not tolerant of winter." However, according to the Placer Mosquito and Vector Control official, eggs of the yellow fever mosquito are very hardy and hard to detect. The eggs can survive for six or more months and are hard to eliminate. "Now that we've found the Aedes aegypti in the neighborhood east of Auburn Boulevard, we're going up a notch and being more focused and trying to understand where they are so we can eradicate them," Buettner said. Residents can also take some measures to protect themselves. "While there has been no transmission of these viruses, the appearance of these mosquitoes warrants extra precautions," said Placer County Public Health Officer Rob Oldham. To reduce the risk of mosquitos, remove all standing water outdoors. "Don't just dump it out but remove it permanently. At this point, we don't know the extent of the spread so we're holding back on restricting birdbaths," Buettner said. "Wear repellant, wear protective clothing. In the neighborhood east of Auburn Boulevard in particular, know about any abnormal mosquito bites during the day." These mosquitoes are aggressive people-biters most active during the day both indoors and outdoors. Also, make sure screens on doors and windows are in good condition. For more information on controlling mosquitoes, contact, Placer Mosquito and Vector Control District at 916-380-5444, placermosquito.org or info@placermosquito.org.