May mosquito counts nearly double 10-year average for Saskatoon
The City of Saskatoon’s mosquito counts are up this May, but it’s still too early to tell how many will invade this summer.
According to the City of Saskatoon’s website, the 2023 average number of mosquitos caught between May 21 and 27 was 1.29, compared with 0.05 for last year’s average and 0.67 for the 10-year average.
“We've been seeing a lot of hot days with a lot of storms and rain,” City of Saskatoon entomologist Sydney Worthy told CTV News.
“The humidity also has an impact on that. And for our traps, there can be a little bit of bias if it's really windy or not. If it's really windy, they don't tend to make it to the traps.”
Worthy said there has been less wind, which could mean more mosquitos caught in the traps.
She said the counts in May could signify a “little uptick before it slows down.”
“We'll have to kind of wait and see.”
Worthy said the weather in the next few weeks will play a role in how many mosquitos people can expect.
“It does look like we are coming into an El Nino event later in the summer and that should make things hotter and drier, which should make it harder for mosquitoes to get those high population numbers we've seen in the past.”
However, the amount of rain the city has seen in May could prove to be ideal for breeding, Worthy said.
“We do seem to be getting a bit more rain than we've gotten the last few years right now here in May. So that is going to have an uptick in numbers with the rain and the heat and humidity, things like that that they'll really do well in.”
Whether there are lots or few mosquitos, Worthy said there were some things that people can do including covering up and watching for standing water in their yard where mosquitoes may be breeding.
Worthy said for the May count, the city used New Jersey Light Traps that have an incandescent light bulb to attract mosquitos.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.