Last year was one of the more interesting years, entomologically speaking. With record drought, there wasn’t much free water around in the summer and it appeared the mosquito population was suppressed; but they were actually hibernating. While the mosquito and even tick population numbers were suppressed in the summer months, their numbers rebounded in the fall.
Mosquitoes overwinter in the egg stage. When temperatures drop below 50 degrees the adult female will lay eggs in standing water. The eggs go into “diapause” (suspended animation) throughout the winter and hatch when temperatures again reach 50 degrees.
Beetles overwinter in the larval stage which is a white grub. They will burrow into the soil and remain just below the frost line. Their numbers suffer during extremely cold weather because they burrow so deep they don’t have enough food sources to survive the climb back up to the surface.
Ticks overwinter in all life stages. They can be found on animals or leaf litter. Ticks do not die in the extreme cold – they form and store glycol in their bodies as a protection against freezing weather. This is why you and your pet can get tick bites even in the winter. Ticks are very active this winter due to the warm weather so continue to check yourself and your pets for ticks. Our tick spraying program can greatly reduce the tick population on your property.
