Mosquito Advisory Issued in Hillsborough

The Florida Department of Health in Hillsborough County is asking residents to take care to avoid mosquitoes as the agency has noticed an uptick in West Nile virus activity in its sentinel chicken flocks around the county.

The last confirmed case of West Nile in a human in Hillsborough County was logged in 2012. The agency is trying to keep it that way by asking residents to take precautions to prevent being bitten.

“West Nile virus is just one of several mosquito borne diseases seen in Florida that pose a risk to the public,” Dr. Douglas Holt, Director Florida Department of Health in Hillsborough County, was quoted in an email release as saying.

Sentinel chickens are flocks that are kept by the county to serve as early warning beacons in the event that mosquitoes in the area are carrying potentially dangerous viruses. A similar warning went out in Pinellas County earlier this month when a sentinel chicken in Tarpon Springs tested positive for the West Nile virus. It is unclear where in Hillsborough County chickens tested positive for the virus.

West Nile virus produces no symptoms in about 70 to 80 percent of people infected, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Some people, however, can develop such symptoms fever, rash, headache, body aches, joint pains, vomiting and diarrhea. In less than 1 percent of those infected severe symptoms may develop. The infection may lead to encephalitis or meningitis, which is an inflammation of the brain or surrounding tissue, the CDC says. Of those who develop severe complications about 10 percent die.

Residents can do their part to control the mosquito population by eliminating ideal breeding locations from their yards. Mosquitoes can breed in as little as a quarter inch of standing water. To reduce the mosquito population around homes, residents can:

• Empty water from old tires, flower pots, garbage can lids, recycling containers, boat tarps and buckets
• Eliminate standing water near plumbing drains, air conditioner drips, septic tanks or rain gutters
• Flush birdbaths and wading pools weekly
• Flush bromeliads twice weekly or treat with a biological larvicide
• Change the water in outdoor pet dishes daily
• Keep pools adequately chlorinated
• Stock ornamental ponds with mosquito-eating gambusia fish
• Cover rain barrels with fine mesh screening
• Repair rips or tears in door and window screens

For more information about mosquitoes and avoiding exposure, visit the Florida Department of Health online.

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