After spending more than $30 million to combat the
mosquitos that carry West Nile virus, New Yorkers have learned
the value of a mosquito control program. Georgia officials are
hoping to learn from their experiences.
West Nile virus can cause encephalitis or inflammation of
the brain. As it makes its way southward, Georgians need to act
now to prevent its spread.
Georgia’s Ready
“Georgia is as prepared for the West Nile Virus as any
U.S. state,” said Paul Williams, consequence management
specialist for the Georgia Emergency Management Agency. “We can
deal with this disease if it arrives.”
The virus had a huge economic impact in the Northeast,
but shouldn’t here. “It’s highly unlikely that we won’t get it
here,” Williams said. But Georgia’s preparedness should lessen
its impact.
In coastal and marshy areas where mosquito populations
are the greatest, Georgia has one of the best mosquito control
programs in the country.
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| Asian Tiger mosquitos are one of the most prevelant types of mosquitos in Georgia. Mosquito control is very important in stopping the spread of disease. |
Mosquito Control
Paramount
“If the virus shows up in Georgia, the best way to
control the spread is to enact a mosquito control program,” said
Elmer Gray, an entomologist with the University of Georgia
College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.
The program would include spraying to kill adult
mosquitos when they’re most active -– at dawn and dusk. That
would also help protect beneficial insects and the state’s
valuable bee industry, since those are the times when bees are
less active.
A Georgia task force will monitor the situation. The West
Nile Virus Working Group includes representatives from GEMA, the
Georgia Department of Public Health, the UGA CAES, the UGA School
of Veterinary Medicine, the Georgia Departments of Agriculture
and Natural Resources and many others.
The UGA SVM and the Southeastern Cooperative Wildlife
Disease Study are conducting a two-pronged monitoring system.
They are studying both live birds and dead birds in the state to
see if they are carrying the virus.
Dead Crows, Early Warning
“The best evidence of the virus is dead crows,” said
David Stallknect, a UGA SVM veterinarian. “It’s like an early
warning system.”
More than 50 bird species are known to have died from the
virus. But it’s most prevalent in crows and blue jays. If you see
a dead crow or blue jay, call the county health department. Don’t
try to collect it yourself.
If the bird tests positive, the health department will
notify you. If it doesn’t test positive for West Nile, it will be
tested for other possible diseases, and you will get a report in
several weeks.
“We can’t test all dead birds, but we are monitoring as
many cases as we can,” Stallknect said. So far, West Nile virus
hasn’t been found in any of the more than 200 birds tested in
Georgia. One crow in North Carolina, however, was identified as
exposed to West Nile.
West Nile’s Journey
The virus first appeared in the United States in 1999.
Later that year, seven of 62 people infected in New York City
died. Last year, two out of 21 infected people died.
Gray said many healthy people, though, probably just
never got sick enough to see a doctor. “Officials feel many more
people have been exposed than the clinical cases diagnosed,” he
said.
Most people infected with West Nile will have no symptoms
or may have a mild flu-like illness with a fever, headache and
body aches. In some cases, particularly the elderly, the virus
can cause serious illness or death.
West Nile is spread by mosquitos that get the virus from
infected birds. It’s transmitted by both the Culex mosquito,
which
usually bites at dusk, and the Asian tiger mosquito, which bites
during the day.
Both species are in all Georgia counties. The odds of
getting any illness from a mosquito bite in Georgia, however, are
very low.
For more information on West Nile, visit:
http://health.state.ga.us/epi/vbd.shtml.
