"Operation mosquito" fights bites

Abstract

The tropical and subtropical climate in Louisiana creates conditions that support mosquitoes year-round. Mosquitoes are not only a nuisance but, more important, can transmit several diseases to people and domestic animals when biting for a blood meal. Louisiana is historically host to several viral mosquito-borne diseases such as St. Louis encephalitis, eastern equine encephalitis and LaCrosse-California encephalitis. As recently as 2001, West Nile virus was first reported in the state. In 2002, Louisiana ranked among the top five states in the nation in number of West Nile encephalitis cases, and first when cases per inhabitants were taken into account. The outbreak of West Nile virus in Louisiana in 2002 led to a cooperative venture between the LSU AgCenter and the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals Office of Public Health (DHH/OPH). In the summer of 2002, DHH/OPH funded a team of LSU AgCenter entomologists and other personnel to conduct Operation Mosquito, the mosquito surveillance component of the AgCenter’s West Nile Virus Mosquito Program. Team members, led by entomologist Michael Perich, collected mosquitoes in 12 parishes that had reported a human case of West Nile but were without organized mosquito abatement programs. The purpose was to determine what potential vectors of West Nile were present and to gather information on the mosquito abundance in these parishes.