Sunriver tackles March mosquito mayhem

Another sign of the unusual low-snow winter: the Four Rivers Vector Control District in Sunriver is gearing up for mosquito season, in March.

“I’ve already had mosquito complaints,” district Manager Chad Stubblefield said Wednesday.

The insects are buzzing much earlier than previous years.

“Past couple years, we’ve been treating third week in March or so — and this year we started that a few weeks sooner,” Stubblefield said.

Marshes in Sunriver usually freeze in January and February, freezing the mosquito larvae in the water.

This year, that water is standing, creating the perfect pools for breeding blood-sucking creatures. In and around Sunriver, the vector control district tackles them by spraying a biological larvacide on the ground, in the water and by air via helicopter.

However, this year’s warmer than usual winter does not necessarily mean more of the pesky insects will be around this summer.

“No I don’t think it’s a matter of more — I think it’s actually less,” Stubblefield said.

That’s because our warm winter was coupled with less snow than usual. When the snowpack melts, it creates pools for the mosquitoes to develop in.

“There’s less water — less water for them to do their thing in,” Stubblefield said.

The insects prepare for dry seasons and stay dormant for months.

“If a 20-year flood comes around, then bam! You’re just getting nailed,” Stubblefield said.

There’s still time for rain, and if that comes with warm temperatures, there could be swarms.

“They’d go from an egg to flying in less than seven days,” Stubblefield said.

The vector control manager said it’s hard to predict whether we’ll have more of them this year, but we’ll be swatting them away much longer.