Your Louisiana Backyard is a Mosquito Farm: Here’s What You Need to Do NOW

If there were any three things most Louisianians are familiar with, they would be rain, muggy heat, and mosquitoes.  And unfortunately, here in Shreveport, we always have plenty of all three. Especially over the last weekend.

Record-Breaking Rainfall in Arklatex

The Arklatex experienced record-breaking rainfall with the accumulation of 3.28 inches of rain within a 24-hour period that ended Monday night at midnight, that shattered the old record of 2.15 inches that was set back in 1970.

According to Richard Lewelling, meteorologist at the Weather Channel:  We are just crushing the record so far for the month.  We’ve had over 81/2 inches of rain here in Shreveport this month.  Normally, we should have about 3.82, so we’ve doubled the amount the amount of rain we would get in a single month.

The Inevitable Mosquito Invasion

And all that rain at this time of the year means only one thing… the mosquitoes are going to be atrocious.

According to Lewelling:  One thing it’s definitely going to have an impact on is the bugs. The skeeters are going to get pretty bad here. We have all this rain… it’s just a breeding ground for mosquitoes. And they’re going to really start to come out in full force.

READ MORE about the Worst Mosquito Cities in Louisiana HERE

After all the rain we’ve gotten recently, and more scheduled, the ground is already overly saturated with standing water in low-lying areas.  This sets up the ‘ideal storm’ for mosquito production.

Tips to Combat Mosquitoes

1. Eliminate Breeding Grounds: The first thing is to make sure there is no standing water anyplace on your property.  Empty containers that hold water like buckets, bird-baths, tires, and flowerpots.
2. Maintain Drain Gutters: An often over-looked source of mosquito breeding ground is standing water in clogged gutters. Make sure your gutters are clear and flowing freely.
3. Treat Stagnant Water:  The Caddo Parish Animal Services and Mosquito Control        offers a sign up service to be notified when they will be spraying in your area.  You can also sign up to request a spraying by calling 318 226-6624, or you can fill out a form ONLINE.

Additional Mosquito Control Measures

You can also consider using fans while outside as fans disrupt mosquito’s flight, which could make them less likely to approach.  Mosquito traps could also help reduce the population in your yard.