Controlling mosquito larvae is highly effective because immature mosquitoes are concentrated in a small area. When the mosquito fully develops, emerges from the water, and takes flight; they can disperse over a large area making control more difficult.

Cass County Vector Control utilizes the best pesticides and practices to eliminate as many mosquitoes as is possible from standing water to eliminate the need for truck or aircraft spraying.

Cass County has over 40 employees that focus on treating standing water full time throughout the summer months. Each vector control employee is licensed to apply pesticides in North Dakota. All products used are registered for residential use by the Environmental Protection Agency. Click the products link for more information, labels, and MSDS.

Mosquito breeding sites in Cass County are documented with GIS technology. Field aides routinely check these sites throughout the season for mosquito larvae or pupae. Treatments are made when necessary. The use of backpacks and all terrain vehicles allow crews to apply thousands of pounds of larvicides to hundreds of acres of breeding sites. Most of the products used are biological, environmentally friendly pesticides which will not harm non-target organisms. CCVC Breeding Site Map

Mosquitoes do have natural predators that will feed on them through all stages of their development. However these predators alone are neither prevalent enough nor physically able to control the vast population of mosquitoes in addition to the other insects that comprise their diet.

A common misconception is that no rain is a good thing as far as mosquitoes go. In some ways this is true, but with regard to ongoing biological control it's not. During a period of drought, the mosquito predator populations dwindle or cease to exist. A lack of rain may mean a lack of adult mosquitoes, but the mosquito eggs are still present awaiting rain (see mosquito biology section). When these rains finally do arrive, natural predator populations that would normally be present must now first repopulate in order to start eliminating mosquito larvae & pupae. This repopulation of predators can be lengthy, giving mosquitoes plenty of time to reproduce several times over.

Some insects that prey on mosquito larvae are: water scorpion, damselfly naiad, dragonfly naiad, mayfly naiad, giant water bug, water beetle, beetle larva, crayfish, freshwater shrimp, tadpole.

Adult mosquitoes have predators including frogs, dragonflies, birds and bats. Research has shows, however, that although mosquitoes do make up part of these creatures' diet, the number or mosquitoes they consume over the course of a night are not significant enough to make a substantial difference in mosquito populations.