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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (March 4, 2015)
4A THE DAILY ASTORIAN • WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4, 2015 AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File Auburn University Mosquitoes already are becoming active on the Long Beach (Wash.) Peninsula, where ample wetlands and standing water provide plenty of breeding places for one of humanity’s most loathed creatures. Mosquitoes will soon be back on our minds (and all exposed skin) There are strategies to reduce their numbers Courtesy James Gathany, CDC, via Wikimedia Commons Culex sp larvae or mosquito larvae. PRVWRIWHQ6RPHDUHJHQHUDOLVWVPL[LQJXS meals between elk, deer, horses, cattle and people. Those that feed most often on large mammals and move between species are more likely to carry diseases. Mosquito-carried diseases In the 19th century, malaria was endemic LQ WKH 3DFL¿F 1RUWKZHVW$QRSKHOHV PRV- quitoes carry malaria, and were already here, disease-free, when humans carrying malaria arrived as settlers; and so for some decades, malaria was a chronic disease east of the &RDVW 5DQJH IURP 2O\PSLD VRXWK WR WKH bottom of the Willamette Valley. This shows a typical pattern of disease transmission: In- fected animals or humans enter a previously disease-free area, and mosquitoes that carry that disease are already present, and begin moving the disease to new hosts. The list of mosquito-carried diseases Lots of species WKDW KDYH EHHQ IRXQG LQ 1RUWK$PHULFD LV When not foraging for a meal of blood, impressive: Western and Eastern Equine En- both males and females behave more like cephalitis, St Louis Encephalitis, Japanese ÀLHV²ZKLFKPRVTXLWRHVDUHFORVHUHODWLYHV % (QFHSKDOLWLV &DOLIRUQLD (QFHSKDOLWLV WR²WKHZRUGPRVTXLWRPHDQV³OLWWOHÀ\´ 9HQH]XHODQ (QFHSKDOLWLV :HVW 1LOH 9LUXV They congregate in their preferred habitats, Dengue virus, Malaria, Avian Malaria, Yel- drinking nectar for food, and just hanging low Fever. There are also several localized out. Where do they hang? It depends on the GLVHDVHVRIVSHFL¿FDUHDV7KHDFWXDOGLVHDVH species. We have more than 40 species of organism may be a virus or protozoan; Plas- mosquitoes in the Washington, and 14 spe- modium species, which are protozoans, are FLHVLQ3DFL¿F&RXQW\ often disease-causing organisms, including Some like salt marshes, and others fresh- multiple forms of malaria. water marshes. Some like ponds with dense Control strategies vegetation on the edges, others seek clean While many have railed that mosquitoes RSHQZDWHU6RPHOLNHZDWHU¿OOHGKROHVLQ trees. Others prefer manure-rich standing ¿OO QR XVHIXO SXUSRVH WKH IDFW LV WKH\ DUH water, including sewage ponds and cattle here. Widespread use of DDT in the 20th yards. Still others seek out tiny containers, century demonstrated that attempting to wipe JXWWHUVZDWHULQWLUHVRUZDWHU¿OOHGKRRI- out mosquito populations with chemicals has prints in mud. Some look for sunny water disastrous unintended consequences on local sources, others for shade. Many live in low- HFRV\VWHPV5HGXFLQJWKHLUQXPEHUVUDWKHU land areas, but some prefer higher eleva- than waging all out war, is a better strategy. tions, living in snowmelt ponds. As for time • First, know which species live in your RI GD\ WKDW DOVR YDULHV 6RPH À\ DW GDZQ community. It’s very likely that there are sev- and dusk, others after dark, others in full eral species, not one. Know the species, and daylight, some only in shade. you will know the larval habitat that species As for blood sources, all mosquitoes do SUHIHUV 7KLV LV YHU\ LPSRUWDQW ² ZLWKRXW not prefer the same choices. Some only feed knowing what species you have, you may RQDPSKLELDQRUUHSWLOHEORRG²LQRXUDUHD well spend your time and money in the wrong this includes salamanders and frogs, garter DFWLYLWLHVLQWKHZURQJSODFHV&RPPXQLWLHV snakes and the occasional lizard. Others pre- with mosquito control programs have staff fer bird blood. Many prefer large mammals, that spend their time collecting larval and and those are the ones that we interact with adult mosquitoes and identifying which spe- cies live where; once they know the species, WKHQWKH\FDQZRUNRQWKHQH[WVWHSEHORZ • Second, reduce available larval habi- tat, or improve predation on larvae in those habitats. This is a good strategy for salt and freshwater pond and marsh mosquitoes. 5HGXFHDQGHOLPLQDWHVPDOOVRXUFHVRIZD- ter too. These include old tires, bird baths, EXFNHWV DQG WR\V ¿OOHG ZLWK ZDWHU JXWWHUV with standing water. Mosquitoes can go from freshly laid eggs to adults in less than a week, so if you have bird baths, change the water at least twice a week. In ponds and ditches, Bti, a bacterial disease that kills larvae, helps with some species. Gambu- sia, a tiny guppy, eats mosquito larvae in freshwater ponds and lakes. There are other strategies too, these are just starting points to reduce larvae numbers. • Third, protect your home so that mosquitoes do not live indoors with you. 6FUHHQHG GRRUV DQG ZLQGRZV DUH WKH ¿UVW line of defense. Some species like to live around and in buildings. Keep your screens in good shape, and they will help keep mos- quitoes out of homes. Bed nets are also JRRGHVSHFLDOO\ZKHUHQLJKWÀ\LQJPDODU- LDFDUU\LQJVSHFLHVDUHFRPPRQ&XUUHQWO\ this is not a local problem, but is very im- portant where Anopheles mosquitoes and Plasmodium malarial species both live. • Fourth, cover your skin when outside. 0RVTXLWR KDWV ZLWK ¿QH QHWWLQJ IURP WKH brim to the shoulders), long sleeves, long pants, and good repellents all help. One sum- mer Frank and I measured shore pine trees at Leadbetter Point in late June. Local popula- tions of a native freshwater marsh mosquito were at their annual peak. We wore mesh hats, long sleeves and pants, used DEET re- pellent. Frank cored trees; I counted cores. The mosquito clouds were so dense that it ZDVGLI¿FXOWWRVHHWKHJURZWKULQJVWRFRXQW WKHPRUP\QRWHVDV,ZURWHGRZQ¿JXUHV We had to reapply DEET every 30 minutes to our hands, because after 25 minutes, the mosquitoes stopped hovering an inch or two above the skin, and started landing to feed. About day three, preparing for that day’s work took sheer nerve! As the weather warms up, after this un- VHDVRQDEO\ZDUPZLQWHUH[SHFWKXQJU\IH- PDOHPRVTXLWRHVWRÀ\VRRQ%HUHDG\IRUD long mosquito season. Marbled murrelets to stay covered &RXUWXSKROGV protection for threatened seabird By JEFF BARNARD The Associated Press A federal appeals court has rejected a lawsuit by the tim- ber industry seeking to strip Endangered Species Act pro- tection from a threatened sea- bird that nests in old-growth forests. Environmentalists say the UXOLQJ)ULGD\E\WKH86&RXUW RI$SSHDOVLQ:DVKLQJWRQ'& should mark the end of a 15- year legal battle over logging trees used by marbled murrelets along the coasts of Oregon, :DVKLQJWRQ DQG QRUWKHUQ &DOL- fornia. 7KH $PHULFDQ )RUHVW 5H- VRXUFHV &RXQFLO KDG DUJXHG 1RVWULQJV attached &RQJUHVVVHQGV+RPHODQGELOO to Obama without conditions By KATHLEEN SAYCE For EO Media Group Insects are by far the largest of animal groups on the planet, with a staggering di- versity of life forms and lifestyles. We tend to reserve a special loathing for insects that feed on blood. Mosquitoes are probably at the top of that list, perhaps because they descend on their prey in clouds, or bite sleeping bodies, making a distinctive high- pitched sound that involuntarily triggers a faster heart beat and higher blood pressure. That feeding cloud of mosquitoes is composed of females, sometimes with males hanging around the edges. Successful feeders will depart with a full stomach of blood, take a day to digest it, then within a few more days lay eggs in suitable wet hab- itats. A week later, they repeat the cycle. The blood provides proteins to make the eggs, which mosquitoes cannot get from their RWKHU IRRG VRXUFH ÀRZHU QHFWDU ,Q PDQ\ VSHFLHVIHPDOHVOLYH¿YHRUVL[PRQWKVDQG overwinter in a sort of dormancy. The blood- borne diseases are picked up by females as they feed on infected hosts, and then spread to those hosts that they later feed on. The most dangerous mosquito, most likely to carry a disease, is the older female who has lived a few months and fed many times on a variety of animals and humans in areas where suitable diseases are found. The Homeland Security Department headquarters in northwest Washington is pictured Feb. 24. Bitter- ly admitting defeat, House Republicans on Tuesday abandoned their attempts to use the Homeland Se- curity Department’s spending bill to force conces- sions from President Barack Obama on immigration, and sent him legislation to fund the agency through the end of the budget year with no strings attached. AP Photo/The Seattle Times, Steve Ringman Two marbled murrelets swim off Lopez Island near Seat- tle, Wash. that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service acted arbitrarily and capriciously in designating the U.S. population of marbled murrelets distinct from birds LQ&DQDGDGHVSLWHDOLQHLQWKH law saying political boundaries are a valid reason. The appeals court found the decision did not depart from standard practice, and it let stand a district court ruling. ³7KH ELJ SLFWXUH LV WKDW ZH are disappointed in our contin- ued inability to get the judicial branch of our government to H[HUWVRPHFRQWURORYHUWKHDG- ministrative branches’ overzeal- ous interpretation in favor of the PDUEOHG PXUUHOHW´ VDLG $QQ Forest Burns, vice president of WKH $PHULFDQ )RUHVW 5HVRXUFH &RXQFLO LQ 3RUWODQG ³,W¶V QRW about the bird. It’s about log- JLQJ,W¶VWKHELUGGXMRXU´ Kristen Boyles, an attorney for the environmental group Earthjustice, said she felt the reason the timber industry has EHHQZLOOLQJWR¿JKWVRKDUGWR remove protections for the mar- bled murrelet is that it is not as charismatic as the northern spot- ted owl, which was the prime fo- cus of lawsuits that cut logging by 90 percent on national forests LQWKH1RUWKZHVW The marbled murrelet is a robin-sized bird that feeds and OLYHVRQWKHRFHDQEXWLWÀLHVDV much as 50 miles inland to lay a single egg in a mossy depression on a large tree branch. While much of the battle over logging LQ WKH 1RUWKZHVW KDV JRQH RQ over habitat for spotted owls and salmon on national forests, the marbled murrelet was the reason the Oregon Department of Forestry withdrew two dozen timber sales on the Elliott State )RUHVW RXWVLGH &RRV %D\ ODVW year. Under a federal court order, the marbled murrelet was listed as a threatened species in 1992 LQ2UHJRQ:DVKLQJWRQDQG&DO- ifornia because of the loss of nesting habitat to commercial ORJJLQJWKHORVVRI¿VKWRHDWWR gillnetting and oil spills. :$6+,1*721 $3 ² %LWWHUO\ DGPLWWLQJ GH- IHDW WKH 5HSXEOLFDQFRQ- WUROOHG &RQJUHVV VHQW legislation to President Barack Obama on Tues- day that funds the Depart- PHQW RI +RPHODQG 6H- curity without any of the immigration-related con- cessions they demanded for months. Obama promised to sign the bill as soon as he received it, while criticiz- LQJ &RQJUHVV IRU WDNLQJ ³IDUWRRORQJ´WRSDVVLW ³6DQLW\ LV SUHYDLOLQJ´ VDLG 5HS 3HWHU .LQJ 51<DIRUPHUFKDLUPDQ RI WKH +RPHODQG 6HFXUL- W\ &RPPLWWHH EHIRUH WKH +RXVH YRWHG LQ favor of the $40 billion spending bill. All 182 Democrats present voted for the bill, while it re- FHLYHGRQO\5HSXEOLFDQ ³\HV´YRWHV ³, DP JODG WKDW +RXVH 5HSXEOLFDQV ¿QDOO\ FDPH WRWKHLUVHQVHV´VDLG5HS /RUHWWD 6DQFKH] RI &DO- ifornia, a top Democrat RQWKH+RPHODQG6HFXULW\ &RPPLWWHH The outcome averted a partial agency shutdown which would have begun Friday at midnight. It was a major victory for Obama and the Democrats, and a ZKROHVDOH UHWUHDW IRU 5H- publicans, who have spent months railing against an ³XQFRQVWLWXWLRQDO RYHU- UHDFK´ E\ 2EDPD LQ H[- tending deportation stays and work permits to mil- lions of immigrants in this country illegally. ,Q WKH HQG 5HSXEOL- cans who’d tried to use WKH '+6 VSHQGLQJ ELOO to undo Obama’s actions had little to show but weeks of gridlock and FKDRWLFVSHFWDFOHRQ&DS- LWRO +LOO LQ WKH ZDNH RI assuming full control of &RQJUHVV LQ WKH 1RYHP- ber midterm elections. The turmoil brought the +RPHODQG 6HFXULW\ 'H- partment to within hours of a partial shutdown last )ULGD\ EHIRUH &RQJUHVV SDVVHGDRQHZHHNH[WHQ- sion, and raised questions DERXW 5HSXEOLFDQV¶ DELOL- ty to govern responsibly. On Tuesday morning, addressing an unchar- acteristically subdued JDWKHULQJ RI +RXVH 5H- publicans, Speaker John Boehner indicated he was out of options. ³, DP DV RXWUDJHG DQG frustrated as you at the lawless and unconsti- tutional actions of this SUHVLGHQW´ %RHKQHU WROG KLVFDXFXV³,EHOLHYHWKLV GHFLVLRQ ² FRQVLGHULQJ ZKHUH ZH DUH ² LV WKH right one for this team, and the right one for this FRXQWU\´ ³2XU 5HSXEOLFDQ FRO- leagues in the Senate nev- er found a way to win this ¿JKW´KHVDLGQRWLQJWKDW the matter is now in the courts. A federal judge last month put Obama’s direc- tives on hold, a ruling the :KLWH+RXVHLVDSSHDOLQJ &RQVHUYDWLYH ODZPDN- ers who humiliated Boeh- ner last week by voting down a three-week spend- ing bill he proposed did not speak up in the private meeting to dissent or ask questions, people present said. Afterward, they said they were disappointed but had no more moves to make. ³,GRQ¶WNQRZWKDWWKHUH LV RQH´ VDLG 5HS 6WHYH .LQJ5,RZD³7KLVLVWKH VLJQDORIFDSLWXODWLRQ´ ,Q D VWDWHPHQW +RPH- land Secretary Jeh John- son thanked Democrats DQG5HSXEOLFDQVZKRYRW- HGIRUWKHELOODQG³LQSDU- WLFXODU WKRVH LQ &RQJUHVV who showed the leader- ship necessary to get the MREGRQH´ In his own statement, 2EDPDSUDLVHG+RPHODQG Security employees as ³ODZ HQIRUFHPHQW SURIHV- sionals and brave patriots who do a remarkable job, and deserve our gratitude and respect. Today, after IDU WRR ORQJ &RQJUHVV ¿- nally voted to fully fund WKHLUPLVVLRQ´ The measure passed 7XHVGD\IXQGVWKH+RPH- land Security Depart- ment through the Sept. 30 end of the budget year. It pays for numer- ous priorities including Transportation Security DJHQWV WKH &RDVW *XDUG the Secret Service, a host of immigration-related functions and grants to local governments. There have been sug- gestions that Boehner would face an insurrection by tea party-backed con- servatives if he brought D ³FOHDQ´ '+6 ELOO WR WKH ÀRRU %XW %RHKQHU¶V RS- ponents seemed resigned, and there was little sign of a brewing coup. ,QGHHG VHYHUDO 5H- publicans said Tuesday that the outcome was in- evitable. Many had cam- paigned for re-election last fall on promises to stop Obama on immigra- tion, and cheered when %RHKQHUSURPLVHGWR¿JKW the president’s moves ³WRRWK DQG QDLO´<HW VHY- eral acknowledged they never had a viable plan to do so, given Obama’s veto pen and Senate Dem- ocrats’ opposition. The GOP strategy was especially risky given the +RPHODQG 6HFXULW\ 'H- partment’s anti-terrorism responsibilities, which gave Democrats an open- LQJWRDFFXVH5HSXEOLFDQV of putting national securi- ty at risk. ³:HDOONQHZKRZWKLV ZDV JRLQJ WR HQG´ VDLG 5HS &KDUOLH 'HQW 53D ³,I VRPHERG\ ZDQWV WR make an argument against those of us who are doing our duty and governing responsibly, they can feel free to have the argument. We are prepared to defend ourselves and I believe the Speaker will come out of WKLVMXVW¿QH´