Texas is seeing its first human cases of West Nile Virus of the year, and the number of mosquitoes carrying the virus seems to be growing.
New numbers show four people in the state have contracted the virus. The cases are reported in Montgomery County, Galveston, Dallas and Austin.
While there are no human cases of West Nile virus reported in Harris County, the Harris County Public Health Department has found more than 80 samples of mosquitoes across the county have tested positive for the virus.
Mosquito, skeeter, bloodsucker - it doesn’t really matter what you call it, one way or another, it will find you.
Mosquitoes have been around millions of years, and those millions of years have given them plenty of time to figure it out.
The tricky little insects are so good at what they do, most of the time, you don’t even know they’re there until they’re done.
The microscopic needle they use to suck your blood is actually, not one, but six tiny parts that penetrate your skin.
Four of the parts alone are used just to bite through your skin. Two of them even have little saws that cut through without you noticing.
One part is called the Labrum. It’s basically a probe that digs around under your skin searching for blood, ultimately sucking it out.
But the needle you need to worry about most is the smallest one - the hypopharynx. It injects saliva from the mosquito, along with anything else it’s carrying like disease.
Zika controlled the fear here in Houston back in 2016, but West Nile Virus is the one that sticks around.
But most people infected never even know. One in five people develop a fever, and one in 150 develop a more serious, sometimes fatal illness.
Now that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be cautious, especially those who are most at risk.
Everyone can get bit, but anyone 60 and older has a higher chance of developing an infection.
Especially those with these pre-existing conditions like cancer, diabetes, hypertension, and kidney disease.
The best way to keep mosquitoes away is to have no standing water, and wear repellent and protective clothing. If all else fails, call in the experts.