If your backyard has become difficult to enjoy this summer because of mosquitoes, you are not alone. And, the problem is almost certainly worse than it was a few years ago.
Mosquito activity in Long Beach and throughout Southern California has increased meaningfully as invasive species have established themselves in the region and as warm, wet winters have created the standing water conditions that allow mosquito populations to explode.
Understanding what is driving the mosquito pressure in your specific yard is the first step toward doing something effective about it.
At 1st Stryke Pest Control, we treat mosquitoes throughout Long Beach and the surrounding communities.
Here is what is actually driving the problem in Southern California right now and what works versus what does not.
The Invasive Species Changing the Mosquito Landscape
The mosquito that is most responsible for the increase in biting activity in Southern California backyards is not the native mosquito species that residents have historically dealt with. It is the Aedes aegypti, also known as the yellow fever mosquito. Its close relative is Aedes albopictus, the Asian tiger mosquito.
Both are invasive species that have established themselves throughout Southern California over the past decade, and they behave very differently from the native Culex mosquitoes that Long Beach residents were accustomed to.
Native Culex mosquitoes are primarily active at dusk and dawn. They breed in larger bodies of water and tend to stay relatively close to their breeding sites.
Aedes mosquitoes bite aggressively throughout the day, which is why they target you in the afternoon while you are gardening, not just at evening barbecues. They breed in extremely small amounts of water, such as a bottle cap, a saucer under a potted plant, or a clogged gutter holding an inch of water.
They are also highly localized, meaning the mosquitoes biting you in your backyard are almost certainly breeding within a very short distance of where you are standing.
According to the Greater Los Angeles County Vector Control District, Aedes mosquitoes have now been detected throughout most of Los Angeles County and represent the primary mosquito concern for residential properties in the region.
Finding and Eliminating Breeding Sources
Because Aedes mosquitoes breed in tiny amounts of standing water and stay close to their breeding sites, source elimination is the most effective control strategy available to homeowners. A systematic search of your property for standing water will almost always reveal multiple breeding sites that you did not initially recognize as problems.
Common sources include saucers under potted plants that collect water after irrigation, low spots in the yard or on patios that hold water after rain or irrigation, tarps, toys, or equipment covers that collect rainwater in folds, irrigation valve box lids that accumulate water, bird baths that are not refreshed at least twice weekly, and gutters that are clogged and hold standing water for days after rain.
Eliminating every source of standing water on your property, including sources as small as a bottle cap, is not an exaggeration. Aedes mosquitoes need only a teaspoon of water and about a week to complete a breeding cycle from egg to biting adult.
What Does Not Work
Many of the mosquito control products that homeowners reach for first are poorly matched to Aedes mosquitoes specifically.
Bug zappers attract and kill many insects but are largely ineffective against mosquitoes, which are not strongly attracted to UV light. Citronella candles and similar repellent products provide minimal protection beyond a very small radius.
Backyard foggers using synthetic pyrethroids can provide temporary knockdown of adult mosquitoes but do not address breeding sources and require repeated applications to maintain any effect.
None of these approaches address the source of the problem.
Professional Treatment
A professional mosquito treatment program combines source reduction inspection and guidance with targeted residual treatments to breeding sites and resting areas, typically dense vegetation, shaded areas, and structural harborage where adult mosquitoes rest between feedings.
Larviciding treatments applied to water sources that cannot be eliminated, such as ornamental water features and rain barrels, use EPA-registered biological products that kill mosquito larvae without harming beneficial insects.
Take Back Your Backyard
Mosquito pressure in Long Beach is manageable with the right approach.
Our pest control services at 1st Stryke include mosquito inspections, source reduction guidance, and treatment programs designed for the specific invasive species pressures affecting Southern California residential properties.
Contact 1st Stryke today to schedule an inspection and start making your backyard usable again.
