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Placer Mosquito & Vector Control warns Auburn residents about ticks, West Nile and spreading Aedes aegypti
Summary
Placer Mosquito & Vector Control District updated council on mosquito and tick surveillance: low but present Lyme risk in foothills, ongoing West Nile monitoring, and the spread of invasive Aedes aegypti mosquitoes in nearby communities.
The Placer Mosquito & Vector Control District provided an annual update to the Auburn City Council on vector-borne disease risks and prevention, with a focus on tick-bite prevention, West Nile virus surveillance and the spread of invasive Aedes aegypti mosquitoes in the region.
Megan Lovano, public information officer for the district, said the western black-legged tick (Ixodes pacificus) can carry Lyme disease in the foothills and that residents should use EPA-registered repellents, wear protective clothing, remove leaf litter and perform frequent tick checks. Lovano said Placer's estimated infection rate among ticks in the foothills is about 2% to 3%.
The district also discussed West Nile virus surveillance. Lovano said sampling typically returns the first positive mosquito pools in June or July and urged residents to report dead birds for testing and to remove standing water. She described a mosquito-fish program the district operates for small ponds and water troughs.
Of particular concern was the invasive Aedes aegypti mosquito, which spreads dengue, Zika and chikungunya and breeds in small containers in urban backyards. Lovano said Aedes aegypti was first found in Placer County in 2019; surveillance in 2024 trapped hundreds of Aedes mosquitoes across 19 neighborhoods, including many newly positive neighborhoods compared to 2023. The district is conducting door-to-door inspections and localized larvicide treatment where breeding sites are found.
Lovano said district staff run school assemblies and an online learning lab for tick and mosquito outreach and that residents can report standing water or request technical assistance through placermosquito.org/report. Council members asked about school outreach, personal protection and how quickly Aedes can develop from egg to biting adult; the district said some Aedes species can complete development within one to two days under favorable conditions and urged regular elimination of small water sources.
The district encouraged vaccination of horses for West Nile virus and noted there is no human vaccine for West Nile. No regulatory action was requested of the council; the presentation was informational and focused on public education and surveillance.
