Mosquito Season on Mount Lemmon

What to Expect During Mosquito Season on Mount Lemmon

If you're heading up to Mount Lemmon to escape the Tucson heat, you're not alone. The Santa Catalina Mountains have what you’re looking for. The cooler temperatures and pine forests are a welcome break from the desert floor when it’s a million degrees outside. But they don’t give you a break from mosquitoes (sorry).

Most of the year, the elevation really will work in your favor. But when monsoon season comes rolling in, the Mount Lemmon mosquito situation changes fast. And it’s worth knowing why that’s the case and what you can do about it.

Monsoon Season Brings Mosquitoes

Mount Lemmon has a short but intense mosquito season. It runs from July to September, with the worst of it coming in August. And if you’re local to Tucson, you know it’s not an accident that it lines up with monsoon season.

With the monsoons come sudden, heavy rain to the Santa Catalina Mountains. That rain pools in rocky terrain, forest floor depressions, drainage areas, and every low spot on the mountain. Unlike the desert floor where water evaporates quickly, the cooler mountain temperatures and forest canopy keep these pools viable longer. Mosquitoes find them, and the breeding cycle begins anew.

Mosquito season doesn’t last long here, but it hits hard while it lasts.

Mosquitoes Breed in Standing Water

Standing water after monsoon storms is the catalyst for all sorts of mosquito activity around here. But your property can contribute to the problem as well if you’re not careful. Mosquitoes need standing water to breed, and they often find that in birdbaths, potted plants with saucers, tarps, rain barrels, and clogged gutters. At elevation, where rain comes hard and fast during monsoon season, these small sources fill up quickly and often get overlooked.

If you’re looking for a way to do some DIY mosquito control, we have a video on the 7 T's of mosquito control with more information. But to give you a short version here: dump, drain, or flip anything holding water after every storm. This won't stop the mosquitoes breeding in natural pools and drainages nearby, but it will at least make it much harder for your property to contribute to the problem.

Ticks Are a Problem Here Too

Mosquitoes are annoying, but make sure you don’t forget about ticks. Mount Lemmon's forest environment gives a home to tick populations that you won't encounter on the desert floor. Make no mistake: ticks are present in wooded areas, along trails, and in the tall grass of mountain meadows.

Dog ticks and brown dog ticks are the most common, and they’re active from spring through fall. If you have a mountain property and you spend a lot of time outdoors, or you have dogs or kids that do, make sure to do a tick check after hiking or spending time in the yard. Most tick-borne illnesses require the tick to be attached for a while before transmission, so this tip might even save you a trip to the ER to say nothing of the physical pain and the large bill.

What Professional Mount Lemmon Mosquito Control Looks Like

If you’re looking for a way to stop mosquitoes from getting established on your property, it’s hard to go wrong with a barrier treatment from Mosquito Squad of Tucson. It works because it targets the places where mosquitoes rest during the day like shaded areas and vegetation. The products used are EPA-registered and can cut down on the mosquito population by up to 90% for up to 21 days.

During monsoon season, timing matters. Scheduling treatment before the heaviest monsoon activity means you're ahead of the first major breeding cycle. And with Mosquito Squad, your treatment is reapplied every 21 days so you never find yourself playing catch-up with an out-of-control mosquito population.

Heading up to Mount Lemmon and wondering about mosquitoes this season? Call Mosquito Squad of Tucson at (520) 224-1606 or contact us online for a free quote.