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The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) announced today the first confirmed death in California due to West Nile virus (WNV). The death occurred in San Luis Obispo County. West Nile virus is transmitted to humans and animals by the bite of an infected mosquito. As of July 9, WNV has been detected in 45 dead birds from 6 counties and 177 mosquito samples from 13 counties. West Nile virus is influenced by many factors, including climate, the number and types of birds and mosquitoes in an area, and the level of WNV immunity in birds. The risk of serious illness to most people is low. However, some individuals – less than one percent – can develop serious neurologic illnesses such as encephalitis or meningitis.

We are excited to share that mosquito districts across the state have worked together to support the Mosquito and Vector Control Association of California to secure annual funding for CalSurv - a mosquito and mosquito disease tracking tool.

In many parts of the world, mosquitoes are a common summertime nuisance. But in places on the front lines of climate change, these disease-spreading insects may one day be a year-round problem, according to new research from the University of Florida. "In tropical regions, mosquitoes are active all year, but that isn't the case for the rest of the world. Outside of the tropics, winter temperatures cause mosquitoes to go into a kind of hibernation called diapause. We call these mosquitoes 'cold bounded' because their activity is limited by these lower temperatures," said Brett Scheffers, senior author of the study and an assistant professor in the UF/IFAS wildlife ecology and conservation department. "We found that the mosquitoes in our study are what we call 'plastic,' meaning that, like a rubber band, the range of temperatures they can tolerate stretches and contracts at different times of year," Scheffers said. "That tells us that as climate change makes our autumns and winters warmer, mosquitoes in more temperate regions are well prepared to be active during those times."