An additional half an inch of rain could fall through the end of the week as Anchorage is seeing one of its wettest summers on record.

The Northeast, which has warmed faster than the rest of the country, saw the biggest jump in mosquito days. Look up how mosquito season has changed in your town.

An entomologist who works with the N.W.T. government said mosquito populations throughout the territory are lower than average. That’s because most types of mosquitoes "love water," and conditions in parts of the territory have been hot and dry instead. 

Our Mosquito Magnet trap filled in under a week. We normally empty it once a month or so.

Of the 92 pools of mosquitoes tested, 30 had at least one mosquito that tested positive for California serogroup viruses. There has been one confirmed diagnosis of meningoencephalitis — a severe neurological condition — caused by the snowshoe hare virus. There have been no positive cases yet of West Nile Virus.

Mosquito populations may be down, but the gnats, no-see-ums, white sox and several other unidentified bugs were relentless.

It may not come as a surprise, but Yukon has seen an unusually high number of mosquitoes this year — and they aren't physically distancing.

Mosquito populations have decreased in some areas, perhaps due to changes in the surrounding vegetation or weather.

Fewer wasp and mosquito interactions in Anchorage in 2018 than typical.

First mosquito (and bite) of year.

An early season?

Mosquito populations are way up in Southcentral Alaska this year. Extremely high numbers are also reported from interior Alaska.

Each spring, it seems, the air of Alaska is filled with the buzz of mosquitoes and the whines of people declaring that this is undoubtedly the worst bug season they've ever experienced. This year they may have a case.

The swallow that makes the biggest dent in insect populations in these parts is the cliff swallow. These birds can nest in colonies of several thousand given the right conditions. The largest group of swallows I’m personally aware of is on the middle Porcupine River, where the cliffs of impressive Howling Dog Canyon host at least 4,000 swallows.