Contra Costa Mosquito & Vector Control
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Events & Presentations

Contra Costa Special Districts Association
5019 Imhoff Place
Martinez
Monday, July 20
10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Delta Informal Gardeners
809 Second Street
Brentwood
Monday, July 27
7:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.

Concord Farmer's Market
Downtown Concord
Tuesday, August 4
9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

Dalis Gardens Mobilehome Park
3161 Terraza Del Sol
Concord
Wednesday, August 12
6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

Moraga Rotary Club
Soda Activity Center
Moraga
Tuesday, August 18
Noon to 1:00 p.m.

Antioch Senior Center
415 W. 2nd Street
Antioch
Wednesday, August 19
10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.

Realtors
Veteran's Hall
400 Hartz Avenue
Danville
Thursday, August 27
8:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.

Pittsburg Seafood Festival
Pittsburg
Saturday, September 12 to Monday, September 14

Lafayette Art & Wine Festival
Mt. Diablo Blvd.
Lafayette
September 19 & 20
10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.

Richmond Rotary Club
Richmond Country Club
1 Markovich Lane
Richmond
Friday, November 13
11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Contact us now to schedule an event or presentation.

 
We speak to groups, associations, school children and business personnel about mosquitoes, ticks, skunks, rats, and yellowjackets. FREE. 

 

For more information, please contact:

Nola Woods 925-771-6158 

Andrew Pierce 925-771-6117

 

 

Mosquito Control Matters video 

Have you ever seen a mosquito hatch from its egg and grow to a winged adult, morphing from its pupated state and rising majestically from below the water's surface to its top? We didn't think so! 

 

Or how about a visualization of West Nile virus crossing the country in just five short years?

 

Check out our Mosquito Control Matters video. You'll see fantastic mosquito life cycle footage and learn why mosquito control matters in California.

 

Historical.

Fascinating.

Educational.

Call to Action: Forward this newsletter to a friend. 

 

Please help us fight the bite. Tell a friend!    
We STILL Need Your Empty Coffee Cans for our Mosquitofish Program

We are quite low in our stock. You recycle, we save tax payers' money, and the fish have safe transportation to your home. Win! Win! Win! Please donate those cans today.

 

This informative video details how to properly apply mosquito repellent to your skin and/or clothing, proper precautions to take, and how to apply these products to children.

  

 
An excellent video courtesy of Bayer that details the importance of mosquito control in your community.


 

 
Learn how our free services pertaining to rats and mice can benefit homeowners in Contra Costa County who have issues with rodents in or around their property. 
 
 
 
Mosquito Bytes 
July 2015
 
 

Something fishy is going on at mosquito and vector control. Don't let that alarm you, it's all in the name of health and good will. Either way, you can bet we've got the scoop this month. Check out the story on the tiny, yet voracious mosquitofish, dutiful protectors locally and worldwide. These hearty fish fight the bite well before the biting, flying mosquitoes have a chance to even get airborne. And they are available to you free of charge. Find out below how to get them to your backyards in an earth-friendly way with a little help from our friends. And if that doesn't make your day brighter, learn how a multi-agency approach is saving an important, nearly endangered fish species.

CALIFORNIA AGENCIES ACT TO SAVE FISH FROM ENDANGERED LIST

District biologist plays key role in the effort


District Biologist Chris Miller works in the one-of-a-kind
fish-rearing greenhouse in Concord, California


 
The Sacramento perch, a recreational sport fish and potential fish market delicacy, is at risk of becoming an endangered species. However, thanks to a crucial partnership between the Contra Costa Mosquito & Vector Control District, East Bay Regional Parks and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, this native fish may rebound with the help of the District's Biologist Chris Miller.

 

"There is no one in this state or possibly the country who knows more about spawning Sacramento perch than Chris Miller," says the coordinator of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife's Aquaculture Program Randy Lovell.

 

Lovell says the Sacramento perch, a native sunfish, was once plentiful in Northern California until settlers arrived in the Golden State. They brought with them fish from other areas that overpowered the perch and since then, the number of these fish has been dwindling. Not too long ago, drought conditions yielded a new residency of protected red-legged frogs in a lake at Tilden Park that had long been home to Sacramento perch. Thus, the fish had to be relocated.

 

Cue Chris Miller.
 

Miller set up both individual and colony spawning tanks at the District's fish-rearing facility for the perch where he's been able to increase the fish's population; a feat rarely achieved in captivity. In addition to the immediate benefits, the largest fish are tagged so that Miller can collect genetic information on each fish for future studies.

 

The perch populations have grown at the District to the point that they have been relocated into new waterways identified by the state.

 

Lowell says it's important to bring Sacramento perch back from the brink of extinction because it is a highly adaptable fish that could serve as a sustainable food source, is liked by recreational fishing enthusiasts, and is growing in popularity among the soilless farming crowd as a water fertilizing source (aquaponics).

 

For Miller, he's excited to be doing his part to ensure the fish's success.

 

"It's a great opportunity to give these fish a healthy place to thrive and the process serves as a learning tool as well. I love these local fish and I look forward to seeing them used more widely," said Miller.

TRADER JOE'S HELPS FISH PROTECT PUBLIC HEALTH WITH CAN DONATIONS

Claycord.com and resident help forge partnership


Trader Joe's cans stock the shelves at the mosquitofish self-serve station at the Contra Costa Mosquito & Vector Control District in Concord, California


 
Trader Joe's, a hip, privately held specialty grocery and wine store is an unlikely champion of public health, but a champion nonetheless. And it turns out, a friend-of-the-earth recycler, too.

 

Used coffee cans, once a vessel for the morning brew, become rapid transit for mosquitofish from the self-serve fish tank at our District office to the water-filled potential mosquito sources on private properties. Hundreds of cans service Contra Costa County residents every year, providing safe and secure transportation for our finned friends. Trader Joe's in Concord is donating the coffee cans used in their store for their coffee tasting program for a win-win-win scenario.

 

"The partnership was hatched via a Claycord.com reader," said Andrew Pierce, community affairs representative for the District. "The local blog was gracious in helping us get the word out about our plight for containers and one reader-recommendation later, we were stocking our shelves with Trader Joe's signature Joe cans. Without adequate containers such as these, mosquitofish transportation can be tricky."

 

Coffee cans with lids are fairly rare these days with the advent of K-cups and vacuum-sealed coffee bags. Some dedicated residents still save and deliver large garbage bags full of cans to the District office, a mainstay for the program, but the demand for cans has risen over the years due to West Nile virus and the foreclosure crisis that have resulted in many abandoned swimming pools. Neglected swimming pools, even partially filled, are notorious for the ability to produce more than 1 million mosquitoes in a single neglected pool. Two of the 23 mosquito species in the county that can transmit West Nile virus thrive in neglected swimming pools and backyard sources and can fly up to five miles away. Mosquitofish are a natural and ideal solution since they can eat up to 500 mosquitoes per day, per fish, and are useful in horse troughs, neglected pools, water barrels, and other water-filled containers.

 

The District raises about 1 million mosquitofish every year for natural and efficient mosquito control in Contra Costa County as part of the Integrated Vector Management program.

 

Contra Costa County residents can visit the District to pick up mosquitofish free of charge for their backyard water features, Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Visit our website to learn more about our  mosquitofish program or for directions to our office. And rest assured, thanks to Trader Joe's coffee cans, the mosquitofish will make a safe journey to their new home.

VECTOR CONTROL LINGO

Test your knowledge and solve the puzzle

 


We hope you enjoyed this issue of Mosquito Bytes and welcome your comments.

Please contact us with your thoughts, questions, concerns, or ideas for future articles. We always love hearing from you.

Be well!

Enthusiastically,

The Public Affairs Team

Deborah Bass               Nola Woods               Andrew Pierce

Public Affairs Mgr.      Public Affairs Rep.        Public Affairs Rep.

     

 

Contra Costa Mosquito & Vector Control

155 Mason Circle  *  Concord, CA  94520

925-771-6183

www.ContraCostaMosquito.com

http://twitter.com/CCMosquito

[email protected]

[email protected]

[email protected]

Protecting Public Health Since 1927