Cities produce enormous amounts of standing water through infrastructure, including catch basins, flat rooftops, clogged drains, and neglected containers. Mosquitoes don't need a swamp to breed—a bottle cap's worth of water is enough.
There's a common assumption that mosquitoes are a suburban or rural problem. Once you're in the city, the thinking goes, the concrete and lack of green space should take care of it. Chicago homeowners know better. The city has a significant mosquito problem, and the reasons are built into the landscape.
Storm drains and catch basins are among the largest mosquito producers in any city. Chicago is no exception, and in fact, its flat terrain means that water moves even more slowly through them. Catch basins, in particular, hold standing water by design. That water will sit for days or weeks, and mosquitoes lay eggs in it. A single city block can have a dozen catch basins, with each one functioning as a large mosquito nursery.
There are also lots of opportunities for mosquitoes to establish small hatcheries. Discarded containers are everywhere, from cups to planters, recycling bins to abandoned tires. They can all hold water, and that’s all mosquitoes need to breed. The Aedes species is especially well-adapted to urban life, in large part, because it can make use of these tiny pools of water. (Plus, they bite during the day, as if being able to breed in tiny pools of water wasn’t bad enough on its own.)
There are also plenty of little microclimates where mosquitoes can rest during the hot days. Some of these are the green spaces of the city, like parks and community gardens. Others are the shaded places between buildings that block wind and trap humidity. In some ways, these conditions are even better for mosquitoes than ones found in nature.
None of this means that urban mosquito control is hopeless. It means that the approach needs to account for the specific conditions of an urban property rather than assuming the city will take care of it.
If mosquitoes are a problem on your Chicago property, Mosquito Squad of Chicago can help. Mosquito Squad treats the resting and breeding areas around your property, reducing mosquito populations by up to 90% for 21 days at a time with regular technician visits throughout the season.
