Mosquito-chasers see fewer bugs, but virus threat lurks

The bug-biting season traditionally starts to heat up midway through the summer. But the region's top mosquito tracker is detecting some unusual signs this year, with fewer pests than normal showing up in many places while other sites are hot spots.

In Hamilton, a species of mosquito that typically carries Eastern equine encephalitis is appearing in numbers that are about 100 percent higher than last July. In Merrimac, the numbers are up about 33 percent. Closer to Boston, in Winthrop, Revere, and Lynn, the population of mosquitoes known for carrying West Nile virus is up about 50 percent.

Overall, however, mosquito populations in Boston's northern suburbs are "significantly down" for this time of year, said Walter Montgomery, director of the Northeast Massachusetts Mosquito Control and Wetlands Management District. The agency tracks and kills mosquitoes in 31 communities north of Boston.

"We are dealing with a changing environment with mosquitoes" and with the EEE and West Nile viruses, Montgomery said. "For years, things were pretty much the same and you could make some reasonable predictions. That is not true anymore. We have to look at things on an annual basis and not let our guard down."
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