Mosquito Bites? Some Tips On prevention

It seems like the mosquito’s were hungry this year… at least whenever I was outside.  So I started doing some research about how to prevent mosquito bites, and reduce the number of insects in the yard.  If you have tried to research this yourself, you will find lots of discussion related to bats and bat […]

It seems like the mosquito’s were hungry this year… at least whenever I was outside.  So I started doing some research about how to prevent mosquito bites, and reduce the number of insects in the yard.  If you have tried to research this yourself, you will find lots of discussion related to bats and bat houses.  Some research has suggested that bats have a voracious appetite for these pesky bugs.  As it turns out, I am not sure that this is the case.  Though there were some studies that documented a bat could eat an extraordinary number of mosquitos in one evening –  these tests were performed in artificial conditions where the bat had no other insects to choose from.  In nature mosquitos make up only a small portion of the insects a bat eats.

So does that leave us with bug spray alone?  We do encourage appropriate use of bug spray – but sometimes it is not practical or desirable.

What is more intriguing is the idea that mosquitos are unable to fly in strong wind.  They also hone in to us with their keen sense of smell.  To take advantage of both of these facts, try setting up an oscillating fan near your grill the next time you are cooking up a barbecue in the yard.  My guess is that you will greatly reduce your risk of getting a bite (at least from a mosquito) if you are in range of the fan.  Any CO2 you exhale or other bodily odors that cause mosquitos to salivate will be blown far away.  Even if they try to make the approach they will unlikely be able to navigate the breeze.  Perhaps that is one of the reasons so many porches in the south come equipped with outdoor ceiling fans.  Let us know if this simple trick works for you.