Stanislaus mosquito fair will offer family activities, information on preventing disease
Mosquitoes will be the main attraction at a family-friendly event in Turlock.
The Turlock Mosquito Abatement District plans an open house March 23 with activities and information on the pesky insects and how to protect the public against mosquito-borne diseases. The event will run from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Several booths will allow parents and kids to look at magnified mosquitoes, mosquito fish and control equipment. Participants may get to meet a vector biologist and leave knowing how to identify the aedes aegypti species, the region’s newest mosquito.
The district has a pond for viewing mosquito fish and will have mosquito control trucks and a drone on display. Children will be given a passport that is stamped at each booth and will earn them a prize.
Every year, the Turlock district conducts surveillance, mosquito control and health education to keep mosquito populations in check and protect residents from diseases such as West Nile virus.
Monica Patterson, a vector biologist for the district, said the public should be aware of aedes aegypti mosquitoes. The invasive bug has been moving slowly through the Central Valley but this past season accelerated and seemed to be everywhere.
Patterson said the species spreads a different spectrum of diseases, including dengue, zika and chikungunya virus, which are prevalent in Central and South America. Patterson said cases of dengue fever have been reported in Southern California in people who had not traveled outside the country.
Most likely, someone brought the dengue virus back from another country, a mosquito bit the person and then spread the virus to other individuals.
Turlock district officials believe it’s the first-ever mosquito information fair, but there is no way to be certain. The district has served the public since 1942.
The Turlock Mosquito Abatement District will hold the open house at its headquarters, 4412 N. Washington Road.
This story was originally published March 9, 2024 at 6:00 AM.
