Mosquito activity on the rise due to rainfall, flooding across Texas

BELL COUNTY, Texas — After the heavy rain and flooding across Central Texas there might be an issue that’s risen and is bugging you.

That’s correct — the insects are out.

The conditions Central Texas is seeing, the extra moisture and the temperatures rising, it’s the perfect environment for the bugs to come out and play. It’s also a busy time of the year for pest control companies.

“Just happens naturally as it warms up, especially when it’s warming up right after a whole lot of rain, which is what we’ve just seen,” said Dauphin Ewart, CEO of The Bug Master.

Ewart said their calls of service lately have a common thread.

“This time of year we hear a lot of calls about ants and we hear a lot of calls about mosquitoes,” he said. “It still hasn’t gotten too hot, so people are still trying to enjoy the outside of their homes and so we’re hearing from those folks who are trying to be outside and enjoy the outside without getting eaten by mosquitoes.”

It isn’t too hot to enjoy the time outside, but Ewart said the conditions across Central Texas are making the population of the ‘skeeters’ explode.

“The funny thing with mosquitoes is they’ll lay eggs in areas that hold water and even when those areas dry out, those eggs will still be viable,” Ewart explained. “Thenm, when the rains come, that will kind of activate those eggs and all those mosquitoes will hatch out.”

Some 6 News viewers tell us they have seen mosquito larvae and eggs around their properties recently. Ewart said there are a couple things property owners can do if the pest are around.

“The number one thing we always talk about is eliminating sources of standing water,” Ewart said. “Anything that can potentially hold water is something that’s worth paying attention to and the more you can do to eliminate those around your home, the better off you’ll be.”

Ewart mentioned a couple items property owners might not consider immediately to be a problem when it comes to standing water include gutters, toys, and rain barrels. He also mentioned trying to put mosquitoes in a wind tunnel.

“Mosquitoes don’t fly very well in high winds, so anytime you can put a fan on — that can be a really big help,” Ewart explained.

If you have a bigger problem, or just want to leave it up to the professionals — Ewart’s team has specific techniques to eliminate or mitigate mosquito populations.

“Really what we’re thinking about is those breeding areas, how to reduce and eliminate the breeding areas and then on top of that we’re we’re targeting the adult populations,” Ewart said. “Those two things together can really effectively bring down the mosquito populations around somebody’s home.”

Overall — the warmer weather really activates all insects, but the heavy rain brings out mosquitoes and fire ants specifically.

Ewart also wanted to warn people to be on the look for termites as it gets warmer. If you have them, get professional help before they become destructive.