LA residents can shout “We’re No. 1!” but it has nothing to do with the Dodgers or Lakers.
The list of the top 50 cities for 2023 was compiled using data from the company’s some 300 branches across the nation showing areas that used Terminix services the most. New York, Dallas, Atlanta, and Philadelphia rounded out the top five, suggesting the bigger the city the more of the pesky bugs.
Other California cities in the top 20 include San Francisco in 10th place, Palm Springs in 12th place, Sacramento at No. 17 and San Diego No. 20.
Contrary to popular belief, mosquitoes draw blood to reproduce and not for survival, so only females are known to bite. Typically, they will go after smaller mammals, amphibians, birds, and reptiles, rather than people, according to the repellent company.
Mosquitoes also detect certain biological signals when searching for their prey, researchers said, such as body heat, odor, movement, or even the color of a person’s clothing. The main attractants, however, are carbon dioxide and the chemicals found in sweat, they added.
Itchy bites are from saliva they inject when drawing blood, which can at worst require treatment for severe itches. The bugs also carry pathogens that can cause diseases in humans, most commonly the West Nile virus in the United States.
Mosquitoes are more commonly found in places with warmer weather, with the top four states unsurprisingly California, Texas, Florida, and Georgia, according to the study.
Some simple steps could help reduce mosquito populations near one’s home, such as removing sources of standing water, cleaning gutters, replacing outdoor lighting, and trimming overgrown weeds or grass, according to Terminix.
Other methods include using dryer sheets, foggers, traps, zappers, and repellent coils, or using mosquito nets over doors and windows, the company said.
