'Tis the Season for Pesky Bugs!

As summer really begins to ramp up and we get warmer weather, we'll start spending more time outside - but we'll be accompanied by a pest that nobody enjoys: Mosquitoes! I don't know about anyone else, but those little guys love me. If I go to an outdoor party, I come home looking like a kid with a bad case of the Chicken Pox. Another group of fun  critters to be aware of during this time are Ticks, especially if you have children or animals that play outside a lot in the summer months. The upside is, there are things we can all do to limit the availability of nesting grounds for these bugs and protect our families from bites.

In Santa Clara County, the group who deals most with these bugs is the Vector Control District. They are strongly urging the public to be aware of these pests, and to be diligent in maintaining their yards to lower mosquito and tick population numbers:

How To Reduce Mosquito Populations
First, take a look around your front and back yards. Do you have any areas where there is standing water? Don't just look on the ground - mosquitoes can breed in any sort of container with standing water, like watering cans, buckets, cups, and ponds. Having standing water on your property increases the likelihood that you'll have a mosquito problem in your yard. And remember, mosquitoes can carry West Nile Virus! So what can you do?

Check outdoor kiddie pools, toys, containers, buckets, planter bases, trashcans, rain gutters, old tires, and leaky faucets or hoses for standing water. If you find any, pour it out! Mosquitoes only require a quarter of an inch of water for about a week to breed, so even a little water can be a potential problem!

Make sure you empty out bird baths completely at least once a week, and refill them with clean water. Bird baths are perfect environments for mosquitoes to breed. 

​Ensure that outdoor dog water bowls are cleaned and emptied frequently!

You can also reduce your personal risk of being a mosquito's next meal by wearing long-sleeved shirts when outside at dawn and dusk, using bug repellent, and by checking window and door screens for tears that could let bugs into the house.

How to Reduce Tick Populations

Ticks are those pesky little spidery-looking bugs that can crawl onto you during your outdoor adventures. They are common in wilderness areas, but can also be present in yards. Juvenile ticks are most active and numerous in the summer months, and are known to spread Lyme Disease. Ticks can be avoided by wearing long pants and sleeves, spraying bug repellent, and by checking yourself, your children and your pets for ticks after being outside. Ticks can be picked up anywhere, but are most abundant in grasses, in leaf litter and on logs and rocks in the foothills and mountains. 

A Little About Birds

Birds can be carriers of West Nile Virus. To be safe, make sure to keep pets and children away from dead birds, and make a phone call if you see a group of dead birds around an area. This could be a sign that the birds were sick with a disease. Do not touch the birds, just simply call California's West Nile Virus Hotline, at 1 (877) WNV-BIRD (1-877-968-2473) or visit their website for more information at www.westnile.ca.gov . 

Reporting
To report standing water, unkempt pools, standing water in gutters, or if you notice any areas where mosquitoes are abundant, call the Vector Control District at 1 (408) 918-4770, or go to their website www.sccvector.org and report it through the online form, which can also be accessed by clicking the button below:

Vector Control District Report Form

​Armed with the above information, you can make a difference in lessening the mosquito populations in the area, reduce your risk of coming home with an unwanted new friend, and keep our county disease-free!