 It is always mosquito season in Florida, but late summer to fall is particularly painful in recent years. Why? Partly due to Republican control of Florida and their small government ethos which included eliminating funding for mosquito control districts in order to cut property taxes by a couple dollars per year. There is less money for spraying that was once taken for granted. Mosquito control districts still exist, but residents often must call the district and ask them to spray in a particular area. See the complete list of Florida Mosquito Control Programs HERE.  |
| Zika Virus vector mosquito (Aedes albopictus) Asian Tiger Mosquito |
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| A mosquito meter indicating that it is a "blood donor day" for the bugs at the entrance to Collier-Seminole State Park near Naples on the old Tamiami Trail (Hwy 90 east). They weren't kidding either. On a recent afternoon one just stepped out of the car to be swarmed by hundreds of the voracious insects. |
The insects are vectors for more diseases than any other animal on the planet and one should take precautions to avoid bites whenever possible.
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Therefore buzzing mosquitoes, itchy bites, and spray-on repellents are all part of outdoor summer Florida fun, and for some of us, they’re unavoidable.
Natives know to wear long sleeves or hoodies, long pants, and flap hats that cover the ears and neck, but protective clothing can be very painful for newcomers to our hot and humid climate.
Therefore buzzing mosquitoes, itchy bites, and spray-on repellents are all part of outdoor summer Florida fun, and for some of us, they’re unavoidable.
Natives know to wear long sleeves or hoodies, long pants, and flap hats that cover the ears and neck, but protective clothing can be very painful for newcomers to our hot and humid climate.
If you feel as if you have a huge mosquito target on your back—or arm, or leg—it’s not in your head. Here’s why, and what you can do about it.
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Why Mosquitoes Prefer Some People Over Others
“The phenomenon does exist, and you can demonstrate that scientifically,” James Logan, head of the Department of Disease Control at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, said of the insects’ apparent preference for some people. “You can also show that’s due to body odor.”
Mosquitoes hunt using all of their senses, but smell is a predominant factor. A higher metabolism, higher body temperature and more sweat make you more likely to be bitten. But a person’s scent is just one element. Mosquitoes are attracted to the lactic acid your body produces, the carbon dioxide you exhale and the natural bacteria that live on your skin.
“The good news is that these people smell normal, so they smell like a human being,” Professor Logan said. “The bad news is that they will probably always be that level of attractiveness.”
Professor Logan and his team are studying the genetic reasons for this attraction, as well as natural repellents produced by people’s bodies.
“If we identify the genes that control the production of natural repellents and susceptibility to mosquitoes, we can develop a drug that would keep mosquitoes away rather than putting DEET on,” he said.
Professor Logan is a bit of a hunk and media sensation in some parts. More on him below.
Professor Logan is a bit of a hunk and media sensation in some parts. More on him below.
Keep Mosquitoes at Bay Before They Bite
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend using a repellent registered by the Environmental Protection Agency. The most popular and accessible form of E.P.A.-approved repellent is DEET, short for N,N-diethyl-meta-toluamide.
You shouldn’t be fooled by higher DEET concentrations on repellent bottles, however. Unlike the SPF rating in sunscreens, higher concentrations of DEET don’t mean more protection. Instead, the higher the percentage of DEET in a repellent, the longer it will be effective before you have to reapply.
You should know that DEET will eat the paint off of a car so consider that before applying it to your skin. It is a toxic chemical. Studies have shown up to half of people that use DEET products exhibit negative symptoms such as rashes, skin irritation, numb or burning lips, nausea, headaches, dizziness and difficulty concentrating. And if you ever get DEET in your eyes or if it travels to sensitive regions of the human body, its game over. Severe burning and distress can occur. Of course the upside is that DEET is very effective.
Janet McAllister, a research entomologist for the C.D.C.’s division of vector-borne diseases in Fort Collins, Colo., recommends visiting the E.P.A.’s repellent-finder website to choose the right one for your needs.
“If you’re going to be outdoors for eight hours, you might want to try a higher concentration repellent, but if you’re only outdoors gardening for maybe an hour or two, you could use a lower concentration,” Dr. McAllister said.
And those citronella candles — do they work?
“No,” Dr. McAllister said, “not unless you’re standing directly over the candle. It’s the smoke that repels them, not the citronella.”
“They’re very hard to fool,” she added. “Even if you’re standing next to a mosquito trap, they can still tell a live animal from not.”
Leigh Krietsch Boerner, science editor for The Wirecutter and The Sweethome, product review websites owned by The New York Times, recommends a “dry” insect repellent spray with 25 percent DEET.
“We don’t recommend using higher than 30 percent of DEET for anything,” Ms. Boerner said. She and The Sweethome team tested how different repellents dried, smelled and felt on the skin. They applied some to fabric to make sure it dried quickly, didn’t leave residue and didn’t stain clothing.
Dry versions typically spray on lightly and contain a small amount of cornstarch, which leaves your skin feeling dry after application and avoids that oily sensation that comes with other repellent sprays. The downside to dry sprays, however, is that cornstarch (or talc, in some sprays) can leave a white powder on clothing, but it can be easily brushed off, Ms. Boerner said.
Dr. Mark Fradin, a clinical associate professor of dermatology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, has studied the efficacy of repellents. He recommends a three-pronged approach to prevention: avoid mosquitoes’ natural habitat, apply repellent to skin and apply repellent to clothing.
Similarly, when you’re applying repellent, don’t skimp. Many people treat it as if it has a “cloaking effect,” and that won’t protect you at all.
“A dot behind each ear or on each wrist will not set up a force field,” Dr. Fradin said. “If you skip a one-inch swath, they’ll find it.”
For decades, people used DEET for personal protection until serious toxicity concerns surrounding environmental and health hazards surfaced in the 1980s. While the Environmental Protection Agency has since declared that high doses aren't toxic for humans and the CDC endorses DEET, the compound still incites a soupçon of anxiety in some and is unpopular among parents of young children.
Consequently, a host of DEET alternatives have come on the scene. As of April 2005, the CDC endorsed two additional repellent agents—picaridin, a colorless and odorless chemical, and the all-natural oil of lemon eucalyptus. While DEET is believed to disable the insect's antennae receptors—thwarting its ability to detect body heat, carbon dioxide, or lactic acid, the three clues that an all-you-can-eat blood buffet is near—picaridin forms a barrier on the human skin, similarly deterring hungry insects. The stinky oil of lemon eucalyptus confuses the bugs, masking both carbon dioxide and lactic acid exhalations.
Treat Bites the Right Way
Even with preparation, you’re likely to get at least a few bites over the course of the summer, especially if you’re more prone to bites than others. When it comes to treatment, Dr. Fradin recommends ice, a low-potency hydrocortisone and simple patience.
“We try to dissuade people from using a topical Benadryl cream because of the risk of sensitivity or reaction,” he said. He also recommends staying away from caladryl and calamine lotions for the same reason. Many turn to them to alleviate itching, but these may be better options for skin irritation from something like poison ivy.
“I don’t think caladryl does much for insect bites,” Dr. Fradin said.
Should you have an intense reaction to a mosquito (or other insect) bite, prescription-strength steroids may be needed, and you should consult your doctor. You should try not to scratch, and instead gently tap the area around the bite to alleviate itching. After that, you just have to wait it out. Dr. Fradin offered one crumb of comfort.
“It will eventually stop itching,” he said.
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| Dr. James Logan, entomologist, studies mosquitoes from around the world in an effort to make them less dangerous. The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine keeps mosquitoes in a cavern beneath the streets of London. The bowls contain mosquito larvae in water, while the boxes are where adult mosquitoes live. |
The Hunk Mosquito Doctor
You can't hear it over the noise of London's traffic. But it's there. That faint, whining hum. Right under my feet, thousands of mosquitoes are dining on human blood.
To visit them, you have to go through a sliding glass door into the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. This school started as a hospital on the Thames River, where doctors treated sailors returning from faraway places with strange parasites.
Today, the building holds countless exotic diseases that you hope you'll never catch. The mosquitoes carry just a few of them, and their keeper is an entomologist named Dr. James Logan.
To get to them, you have to go underground, then through two sets of doors and a net, and into the restricted access room.
"We don't want any mosquitoes to escape onto the streets of London, obviously, because we've got tropical mosquitoes here," says Logan.
On the side of the net with the mosquitoes, it feels like the worst kind of August afternoon. Humid, hot and still — just the way mosquitoes like it. We're in low caverns that were built almost 100 years ago, and we have to duck so we don't hit our heads.
"Luckily we have quite short people who work in our insectaries," Logan says. "But these rooms are part of the vaults of the building. At one time during [World War II], for example, they were used as shelters."
Clear plastic boxes line the walls, each one holding hundreds of mosquitoes. Some are from Pakistan, others from Tanzania. There are mosquitoes that can carry West Nile virus and dengue fever.
The really dangerous ones live in a different room, though. When you jostle a box, the mosquitoes go crazy, hungry for blood.
"What I can probably do as well, actually, is put my hand inside if you want to see them," he says.
When I press him on his willingness to be eaten by his mosquitoes, he makes a confession.
"Actually, I have to admit, I have to put my hands up and admit I don't do it myself," Logan says. "Not because I'm a wimp, but because I react really badly to mosquito bites, to that particular species. So we have some people who don't react at all, and they can do it. Or we take blood from people and feed them artificially."
Malaria and other mosquito-borne illnesses kill hundreds of thousands of people every year. This lab is doing research that could help lower that number. It's the reason people call Dr. Logan the mosquito slayer.
He cultivates these insects to learn how better to obliterate them on a massive scale.
Speaking of massive, he points out a box behind me with enormous mosquitoes, each one the size of a small beetle.
This species doesn't actually feed on humans. The larvae eat other mosquito larvae, so this is actually a beneficial kind of mosquito. I stick my microphone into the box, and that spine-tingling whine immediately pierces my ears.
Suddenly I catch a movement out of the corner of my eye. It's definitely a mosquito on the loose.
But Logan isn't worried. "It's a male," he says.
How, I ask, can you tell that the tiny thing buzzing around is a male.
"They have bushy antennae," he says, noting that only the females bite. Then he snatches it out of the air.
Dr. James Logan is an entomologist who's not afraid to squish a bug.