Hordes of mosquitoes are hatching across Southwest Florida – thanks to recent heavy rainfall. And mosquito control workers are stepping up their efforts. Techniques for counting mosquitoes are rather low-tech. Workers count the number of the stinging pests in traps. And they check so called “landing rates”. Ginny Day is a biologist with Charlotte County Mosquito Control.

“We have 20 stations – landing rate stations around the county – that’s where they actually stand and let the mosquitoes land on them and count the number of mosquitoes from the waste down in one minute's time.”

Eradication efforts vary – Charlotte County uses airplanes for blanket spraying large areas. Spray trucks drive through neighborhoods – and helicopters zero in on salt marches around Charlotte Harbor. The county will be using all its resources in the coming days to deal with a massive outbreak of mosquitoes.