Bandon residents continue to have mosquito problem. Another round of larvicide was applied Sunday by air to a section of the Bandon Marsh National Wildlife Refuge.
Residents living near the marsh started noticing a drastic increase in mosquitoes last year. Coos County officials approved the use of the larvicide Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis, or Bti, to deal with the problem. Bti is designed to gum-up mosquito's digestive systems after they hatch but before they become adults. Environmental Health Manager Rick Hallmark says the timing of a Bti application is crucial.
Hallmark: "So there's this narrow window where they are eating a lot and that is the only time that Bti is effective against them."
Hallmark says a recent application may have been ineffective.
Hallmark: "Immediately the monitors went out and started looking around and there were just patches where nothing hit here. So no Bti was on the ground or in the water in those areas so before those areas could be effectively treated with Bti, there were a bunch of mosquitoes that matured."
Hallmark says those mosquitoes will be around four to six weeks. Bti is not known to be harmful to humans, birds, mammals, or other insects in short term applications.
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