The Mosquito Brigade
has a better way to control Mosquitoes
It is critical that people respect nature instead of trying to control it.
Wildlife is like the "canary in the coal mine". It could be a warning if it is not healthy.
Hi Mosquito Brigade,This very interesting comment came on my Daily KOS post of the 6/24/25 CMCD Board meeting/protest.
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2025/6/28/2330662/-Are-the-mosquitoes-winning#comment_91535635
From Andrew Cockburn"
I was a member of the American Mosquito Control Association in the 1990s. Everyone in mosquito control has always known that aerial spraying is an idiotic waste of money. It kills some adult mosquitoes but more will emerge in a few days. It also kills just about every other kind of arthropod, including mosquito predators like spiders and dragonflies.I don’ t know Dr. Lucas, but I am confident that if you were able to talk to her with no microphones or reporters present she would say the same thing. But the public doesn’t want to hear it.
Good information about "Natural-Insect And Pest Repellent Plants.
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2025/6/28/2330662/-Are-the-mosquitoes-winning#comment_91537115
Natural-Insect And Pest Repellent Plants.
Are the mosquitoes winning?
COLLIER COUNTY, Fla. —
A grassroots group is calling on the Collier Mosquito Control District to cut its $60 million annual budget in half and prioritize non-chemical mosquito control, including handing out bat houses and bacteria-based larvicides to residents.
The group, self-identified as "The Mosquito Brigade," has become a regular presence at CMCD board meetings. Several members believe current mosquito spraying methods are harming people, pollinators, and the environment.
There's been a huge decrease in the wildlife on my property — butterflies, bees, everything. We need to look at innovative ways to handle the mosquito issue," said Terese Melone of Collier County.
The group’s proposal calls for each household in Collier County to receive a BTI (Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis) bucket — naturally occurring bacteria that kill mosquito larvae — along with a zapper, a Thermacell unit, a trap for adult mosquitoes and a bat house to encourage natural mosquito predators.
"Collier County can set the bar high for Florida. We are entitled to informed consent," said Anne Psomas.
CMCD leadership says the criticism comes during one of their busiest mosquito seasons in years.
"We’re in one of our busiest saltmarsh mosquito seasons that we’ve had in close to a decade. Since June 1, we’ve had close to 3,000 service requests, mostly from coastal areas. That’s 80% of all requests we’ve received this year," said Dr. Keira Lucas, deputy director of CMCD.
Lucas said most of the current activity targets saltmarsh mosquitoes, which breed in mangroves and are known to bite and transmit disease. She said the district uses a mix of aerial spraying, surveillance, larval treatments, sterile insect techniques and natural predators like mosquito fish. They insist all treatments do not harm the environment and are backed by decades of science and research.
"It’s not a one-size-fits-all method. We use an integrated approach," said Lucas.
At issue is not just strategy but spending. The Brigade wants the district’s budget slashed from $60 million to $28 million, redirecting funds toward what they describe as "nature-based, ecosystem-restoring solutions."
"For 60 years, they’ve been spraying us with this toxic spray, and nothing’s changed. Mosquitoes are still here. "I think the mosquitoes are winning."" said Jay Kohlhagen of Naples.
CMCD leaders say they are open to dialogue and invite residents to take tours of the facility to better understand their mosquito control methods. You can also find detailed information on treatments via the district's website.
Ryan Arbogast, Gulf Coast News (NBC)
People spoke at the June 24th CMCD Board meeting.
Please contact the following to try get Florida to take a new and innovative approach to controlling mosquitoes.
Governor Ron DeSantis: https://www.flgov.com/eog/leadership/people/ron-desantis/contact
State Surgeon General Joseph A. Ladapo, MD, PhD https://www.floridahealth.gov/about/ssg/index.html
Attorney General: James Uthmeier
https://legacy.myfloridalegal.com/contact
Thank you for reading and viewing.
Please visit the Mosquito Brigade Website.
mosquitobrigade.org
The following was posted on Nextdoor in 2014 and once a year in the spring by Arthur Oslund.
All living things play a vital role in the ecosystem. Mosquitoes are a food source for fish, predatory insects, bats, birds, dragonflies, spiders, and other mosquitoes. They filter feed, turning over organic matter and helping recycle nutrients back into the ecosystem.
Mosquitoes are also pollinators, helping plants reproduce. Here are some reasons why you might not want to spray for mosquitoes because of the effect the chemicals have:
~Some people and pets may experience eye, skin, nose, or throat irritation, or breathing problems even cancer after being exposed to chemicals.
~The residue of pesticides may be left on outdoor surfaces like boardwalks and furniture after spraying.
~Small swimming insects: Oil surfactants used to reduce water surface tension can cause tiny insects to suffocate and disrupt the entire food chain.
Whether natural or synthetic, broad-spectrum insecticides are highly toxic to a wide variety of insects, not just mosquitoes. Mosquitoes can become resistant to insecticides. Insect resistance to insecticides has been found throughout the world. What happens when mosquitoes not only become completely resistant to pesticides, but also more aggressive?
A few years ago, I went on a fishing trip to a wilderness area in central Ontario, Canada. It was so remote that we heard wolves howling at night and saw bears and the northern lights. I took mosquito repellent but to my surprise, I did not need it.
The lodge owner said the area had never been sprayed and he had cataloged over 40 different species of dragonflies. Some of the dragonflies were a beautiful iridescent blue, red and green. It was the dragon flies that kept the mosquitoes under control.
Florida has over 100 species of dragonflies.
Florida is home to a total of 187 butterfly species. However, the Vineyards Community Park in Collier County has a butterfly garden with no butterflies.
While spraying might be somewhat successful against floodwater mosquitoes, the Aedes mosquito, which can spread yellow fever, dengue fever, and chikungunya, breeds in containers not in easy-to-reach places.
This Aedes mosquito lays its eggs in containers, pots, cans, bottles, closets, inside garbage, and indoors. It lays its eggs above the waterline. When the water level rises, the eggs drop, hatch, and mature. Those conditions are less than ideal for mass spraying campaigns.
Mosquito spraying is done when mosquitos are present. Larvicide treatments disrupt the food chain depriving fish of their natural food by killing beneficial larvae that feed on mosquito larva.
Dragon flies (on the other hand) are always on the lookout for their primary food.
Pyrethroid insecticides continue to be the primary means for control of adult Aedes.
Resistance is mostly due to gene mutations. Multiple mutations can result in highly resistant mosquito populations.
Mosquitoes can't develop resistance to dragonflies.
People do not develop resistance to pesticides.
Since 2003 to 2024, I have traveled eleven times for over 32 weeks all over the Brazilian Amazon rainforest in five different Brazilian states and have only seen two mosquitoes during all of my travels. When you have a balanced ecosystem, pest problems will be easily managed.
I spent two weeks living with local residents in an Amazonian village called San Antonio de Matupi located deep in Amazonia. I did not need to use mosquito repellent or mosquito netting because there were no mosquitoes. I questioned several people who said there was no malaria in the area. Malaria does exist in Brazil but it is very rare in cities and towns.
Insecticides kill predatory insects like Dragonflies that have mosquitoes as their primary food source. The Mosquitoes have a much shorter reproductive cycle than the predators and the end result in more Mosquitoes than before.
That is not to mention killing beneficial insects like honey bees and butterflies. Insect-eating birds and bats are also vulnerable and people cannot help being exposed to spraying.
Some of the insecticides are extremely deadly to humans and some are systemic in the plants and the nectar from the flowers of sprayed plants will kill bees and butterflies. Spraying insecticides up and down the rivers and ponds is enormously expensive and an ecological disaster.
Window screening, mosquito netting and repellent are some effective ways to keep from being bitten. Mosquitoes typically come out at dawn and dusk. Dragonflies will protect us from all species of mosquitoes all the time.
Thank you for reading and
Please read "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson. DDT has been banned but some of the insecticides in use today are much worse. Thank you for taking the time to read this.
Please Visit Beyond Pesticides:
Visit one of the few extensive studies on the effects of insecticides on children
Concurrent urinary organophosphate metabolites and acetylcholinesterase activity in Ecuadorian adolescents.
