From Gold Country Media
July 18, 2020
Mosquitoes are one of the deadliest creatures in the world. Their ability to spread disease causes millions of deaths worldwide every year.
There are 112 genera of mosquitoes in existence, but three genera perform the most acts of pestilence.
Zika, dengue, chikungunya and yellow fever are all transmitted to humans by a species within genus Aedes.
A. aegypti (commonly called the yellow fever mosquito) was reported in south Placer County in August 2019 and several Central Valley and Southern California counties. Although they are out at dusk and dawn, daytime biting is a hint to their presence. They can lay eggs in as little water as contained in a bottle cap.
Human malaria is transmitted only by some females within the mosquito genus Anopheles, and they can be found in Placer County.
The most common malaria vector in our county is Anopheles freeborni. This large, over-wintering pest is a vicious biter which enters houses readily. It can be found throughout most of California, especially in rice-growing areas, and is also a daytime biter.
Ground pools, small streams, irrigated lands, freshwater marshes, forest pools and any other place with clean, slow-moving water are considered prime malaria mosquito breeding grounds for egg-laying.