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As the climate changes and certain parts of the world get wetter, hotter, and far more humid than usual, it brings an extra unpleasant side effect: More mosquitos.
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According to an analysis from Climate Central, most regions of the United States experienced an increase in the average number of mosquito days per year between 1979 and 2022. Some had it worse than others. San Francisco saw an increase of 42 days per year during which mosquitos were a nuisance, and the Seattle-Tacoma region increased by 32 days. Manchester, New Hampshire; Birmingham, Alabama; and Burlington, Vermont increased by 31, 30, and 29 days, respectively.
These numbers are particularly significant considering that the northeast U.S. had an average of just 129 annual mosquito days between 1979 and 2022.
By contrast, many areas in the southeast saw a decrease in mosquitos—likely because temperatures now frequently exceed the optimal mosquito comfort zone.
Image by AccuWeather
Thankfully, a company that makes mosquito-repellant technology has a solution or two up its sleeve. Thermacell has partnered with AccuWeather to produce a way to forecast whether conditions will be prime for mosquito swarms, with forecasts going up to 10 days into the future.
For instance, this weekend (July 15-16, 2023), you can expect mosquitoes to be especially bad in the southeast U.S., across Kansas, Oklahoma, most of Texas, and east all the way through Maryland, Delaware, and south through Florida. Mosquitos will be mild to moderate in most of the rest of the country.
Thermacell’s portable mosquito repellers are rechargeable devices that create a sort of force field around you and your friends, so that you can keep mosquitos at bay without drenching yourself in Deet bug spray.
Image by Anton Petres
We haven’t had a chance to try out the brand’s newest version, the EL55, yet, but Thermacell claims the device creates a 20-foot mosquito-free zone. It also comes with a dimmable light so you can go headlamp-free around the camp picnic table.
Mosquitoes are possibly the worst part about spending time outdoors during the summer months. Do you agree? How do you avoid mosquito bites?
