From The Chicago Tribune
May 29, 2018
The hot weather likely drew a few pesky and uninvited guests to holiday picnics this past weekend.
Mosquito season has returned and so has the annual reminder for folks to do their part in helping keep the mosquito population at bay.
Kane County Health Department spokesman Tom Schlueter said what most people are experiencing is a nuisance mosquito, which is not known for carrying disease.
The real threat, he said, comes from the Culex mosquito because it carries the dangerous West Nile virus. Last year 90 people tested positive for West Nile in Illinois, and eight people in the state died from the disease, according to Illinois Department of Public Health figures.
Because this mosquito species prefers hot, dry weather and its females lay their eggs in stagnant, still water, Schlueter said it’s critical to drain any liquid that’s accumulated in containers, flower pots, old tires and gutters and to change the water in bird baths weekly.
So far this year, no mosquitoes trapped in Kane or DuPage counties have tested positive for West Nile.