Mosquito Monitoring
Mosquito monitoring is undertaken by local experts who volunteer their time to improve the quality of life for our community. You can help with this monitoring by reporting bites. The more information we receive, the more we can create an accurate picture which in turn helps with targeting dredging works to minimise the mosquito menace. You can report bites here using our online form, alternatively you can also report bites via the Neston Life Android App and Neston Life Apple App.
Mosquito Control
Whilst it is not possible to eradicate mosquitoes, Neston Town Council is committed to controlling the numbers in an environmentally responsible way.
The Town Council works with partners to implement a co-ordinated plan for mosquito control based on the concept of Open Marsh Water Management. Pool creation and ditching works, all of which are approved in advance by Natural England, are carried out as part of an ongoing and targeted programme, the effects of which are monitored and in turn inform future management.
Mosquito Forecast
One unique outcome of the regular monitoring is that our professional volunteers kindly provide a weekly mosquito forecast from April to October for the benefit of local residents.
The forecast is based on a traffic light alert system and can be found on this website and also as “Mozzie Watch” on the Neston Life app.
The current forecast is GREEN
Recent weather has been ideal for mosquito survival: quite warm (but not too hot) and quite humid. However out on the marshes, there have been no significant high tides or sufficient rain to fill the breeding pools for some weeks. Consequently we are capturing very few marsh mosquitoes in our traps around the area.
However there are other species of mosquito which can breed in freshwater, and there are modest numbers of these being caught in our traps. These may bite humans, but overall we think the mosquito biting nuisance in the forthcoming week will be low.
Keys to traffic lights forecast
Red:
Serious risk. Many Neston residents are likely to be bitten, especially but not only in the evenings. Precautionary methods as outlined in the FAQs should be used when gardening or enjoying barbecues.
Amber:
Medium risk. Some Neston residents may be bitten, especially on still warm evenings.
Green:
Low risk. Neston residents are unlikely to be bitten.
Feedback on Mosquitoes and the Mosquito Monitoring Programme.
Send us feedback on our monitoring reports by using our online form available here.
Further Reading.
A copy of the study by Michael Clarkson, Phil Jones and Sandra Hughes‐Crean entitled “Domestic mosquitoes in the Neston area of Cheshire, UK”. This single page PDF summarises the detail and conclusion of a long term study into the mosquitoes on the Dee estuary marshlands around Neston and the immediate surrounding towns and villages. This document is downloadable here.