Between the melting of the snow that we received at the end of April and the past weekend, there was a lot of sunshine and little in the way of mosquitos. Then, the rains came, and by Monday, it seemed as though Weyburn had been invaded by the pesky blood-sucking insect. Throughout the city, you can see people doing what is dubbed the “Saskatchewan Wave”, which is flailing arms wildly to shoo off mosquitos that are buzzing around, looking for their next meal.  

So, what are the steps taken to help mitigate the population of mosquitos within Weyburn?  

Paige Tenbult, the Communications Coordinator for the City of Weyburn, explained they start outside of the city limits. 

“We have an annual control program that basically targets mosquito larvae,” Tenbult said. “That’s the area that we’re able to get – when they’re just tiny, little babies.” This work is done by staff who head out on ATVs with the larvicide, aiming to get the mosquitos at the source. This includes standing bodies of water such as ditches, large puddles and more around the perimeter of the city.  

Residents can also help to mitigate the mosquito population as well, by eliminating the breeding grounds for mosquitos within their own yards. 

“The city highly encourages people to dump those containers, tires in their yard, anything that‘s holding water,” Tenbult added. “Dump it out and that will help prevent and control the larvae.”