Two disease-carrying species of invasive and especially aggressive mosquitoes are circling Santa Barbara County, with health and safety officials preparing for what seems like their inevitable arrival. "It is a priority," said Mosquito and Vector Management District boss David Chang of his office's ongoing surveys and conversations with the Public Health Department. "These species have been spreading fairly rapidly."
The Asian tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus) and the yellow fever mosquito (Aedes aegypti) were detected for the first time this September in San Bernardino, Riverside, Kern, and San Diego counties, and they have recently expanded through Los Angeles. Neither species is native to California, and while they've shown up here before, they haven't stuck around as long. They have also been spotted in Imperial, Orange, Alameda, and Tulare counties.
Biologists believe the current infestation began in 2011 in El Monte after the mosquitoes were transported from Southeast Asia in shipments of bamboo plants. They typically prefer warmer, more humid environments.