Health officials say a bottle cap of water is all mosquitoes need to lay 300 eggs

In Topeka, Kansas, as with the rest of the country, warmer weather means more than extra time outside. Health officials say mosquito season is here, and even very small amounts of standing water can quickly become breeding sites for the insects. Even a bottle cap can hold enough water to do it.

What's happening?

With summer temperatures settling in, health officials in Shawnee County are monitoring mosquito activity around Topeka.

As WIBW reported, Shawnee County Health Department epidemiologist Josh Van Drunen said mosquito numbers are normal for this point in the season. He said they still pose a health risk because mosquitoes can spread West Nile virus, which WIBW said is one of the most common mosquito-borne illnesses.

"Mosquito season is definitely upon us. It's definitely summertime," Van Drunen said.

Van Drunen said most people bitten by an infected mosquito will not get sick, but about 20% develop flu-like symptoms. "Think like fever, fatigue, sometimes diarrhea or vomiting," he said.

Why does it matter?

Because of the diseases mosquitoes can carry, they are the deadliest animal on Earth, responsible for around 1 million deaths a year. 

Due to environmental shifts driven by the burning of planet-warming fuels like oil, gas, and coal, mosquitoes are spreading around the world. To show how far they've spread, mosquitoes were just discovered in Iceland for the first time ever. 

What can I do?

WIBW identified Gary Boaz as the owner of Mosquito Joe of Topeka-Lawrence, and he said residents should look around their property for standing water and empty it. He said obvious containers often get noticed, but much smaller water sources can be overlooked.

"Now people might think of wheelbarrows or buckets. Those are the typical things people think of. But things that people don't think of is a bottle cap," Boaz said. "A female mosquito needs only the amount of water in a bottle cap to be able to lay eggs in that. And she can lay up to 300 eggs at a time."

A great way to keep mosquitoes at bay is a mosquito dunk, or as one person described it, a "mosquito bucket of doom." Fill a 5-gallon bucket with water, add some grass clippings or dead leaves, and throw in a mosquito dunk — an organic larvicide tablet. 

Boaz said people can also help keep mosquitoes away by using bug spray and wearing long sleeves. He said mosquito season usually ends in October, but it should not be treated as something that follows the calendar exactly.

"Bugs don't go by the calendar, so they go by the weather and the environment," Boaz said.

"And once you get rain, you get moisture and temperatures over 50 degrees, you're going to have bugs starting to breed, especially mosquitoes."

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