Michigan is spraying at least 10 counties with poision.

The state health department has decided to move forward with aerial spraying for mosquitoes without giving residents an option to opt out.

As of Sunday, Sept. 13, the potentially fatal mosquito-borne illness Eastern equine encephalitis (EEE) has been confirmed in 10 counties. The virus has been confirmed in 22 horses this year in Michigan. No human cases have been reported.

Additional animal cases are under investigation, according to Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. This is twice as many animal cases as the same time last year. There is an EEE vaccine available for horses, but not for people.

Aerial mosquito spraying planned in 10 Michigan counties with no opt-out option

This disease can spread to people. It is nowhere near as contagious as covid.

It looks like no human cases have been reported yet.

I first saw this on reddit

ETA- There is at least one adult suspected to have symptoms.

DETROIT – A Michigan adult is suspected of having the rare and dangerous mosquito-borne virus Eastern equine encephalitis, health officials announced Tuesday.

The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services now urges people in 10 Michigan counties — Barry, Clare, Ionia, Isabella, Jackson, Kent, Mecosta, Montcalm, Newaygo and Oakland — to cancel or postpone outdoor events that take place at or after dusk to prevent more people from contracting the virus, which is spread through the bite of infected mosquitoes. The adult suspected of having the virus is from Barry County.

Also known as Triple E, the virus is one of the deadliest mosquito-borne diseases in the United States, with a 33% fatality rate in people who become ill. It leaves many survivors with physical and mental disabilities. It kills 90% of the horses sickened by the virus. So far this year, 22 horses in the 10 counties that are urged to cancel outdoor events have had confirmed cases of the virus.

Rare mosquito-borne virus suspected in Michigan; 10 counties urged to cancel outdoor events after dusk

I hope they don't double lockdown Michigan.

Midland & Gladwin counties always get sprayed, some of the others haven't to my knowledge in the past including the one we live in. Those counties listed are spread out all over mid and south Michigan which is kind of odd. I read the notice we residents were sent a few days ago, they're spraying Deet and said to keep animals and honey bee colonies near the spray areas indoors or covered for a period of time. I just wonder how many bees this is going to kill in the process.

Last year I believe we had ten cases in Michigan. If the one suspected has it here, they're down by Detroit. I haven't seen that many mosquitoes in our area this year because it's been so dry here but we had a few days of rain last week.

After the outbreak (so to speak) of EEE last year in humans and infected horses, I kind of expected them to be overly cautious this year.

Beats the # out of the heavy spraying in Florida. Man, that crap was awful, they spray a hell of a lot less up here, and only when it gets near-worrisome. Granted, FL has a much more favorable climate for skeeters, if you so much as suspected one, git yer ass inside, here comes the sprayer planes.


Edit: And Hal, it's spotty, yes, but at least they only spray where they have cases/confirmed carriers in traps. No discrimination down south, it's all or...all.

It's Michigan .
It's mid-September.
Aren't they a wee bit late ?

They are spraying Merus 3 from what I read, it isn't very toxic to most people, but people who have certain allergies could suffer a bit since it is a naturally derived toxin from flowers that people might be allergic to. If I lived down there I think I would probably stay indoors when they are spraying the stuff and for half a day after.

originally posted by: rickymouse
They are spraying Merus 3 from what I read, it isn't very toxic to most people, but people who have certain allergies could suffer a bit since it is a naturally derived toxin from flowers that people might be allergic to. If I lived down there I think I would probably stay indoors when they are spraying the stuff and for half a day after.

Whitmer likes shutting down the state. She can do it now, just to be sure.

originally posted by: Gothmog
It's Michigan .
It's mid-September.
Aren't they a wee bit late ?

Perhaps, but perhaps not. This is a weird state, climatically. It can be very...well, damn hard to predict conditions particularly accurately, thanks to synoptic weather and lake interactions. It really is one of the hardest to predict seasonal expectations and even daily weather for out of all the states.


For example, I have spring plants that did not come in, that are now coming in. Just before fall leaf drop. Makes no sense, but they're doing it. I'm not the only person in the area with spring growth coming in finally, either.
It's kinda wacky up here, I even swatted a few mosquitoes tonight taking trash out. Compared to last summer, this summer in my area has not been that consistent with them. The skeeters come and go almost at random, it seems.

a reply to: LookingAtMars

I would hate to be a mosquito in MI. Well, actually I would hate to be a human in MI right now, but it has nothing to do with insecticide.

I don't know about up there, but down here, they delayed or held off on mosquito spraying because of the lock downs and the little buggers were nasty bad.

I always put a fish or three in my pond for larvae control but any standing water had lots of larvae in it.

originally posted by: ketsuko
I don't know about up there, but down here, they delayed or held off on mosquito spraying because of the lock downs and the little buggers were nasty bad.

I always put a fish or three in my pond for larvae control but any standing water had lots of larvae in it.

Your pond comment reminded me of something important -- Michigan is actually quite boggy. I've heard bog and muskeg used interchangeably to describe the wetter terrain, and that's what it is -- bogs. So it's not that much of a shocker that areas with more bog/muskeg (i.e very wet) terrain will have a tougher time with mosquitoes, think of it as northern swamps.

It may also have a correlation to water flow, too. The faster the streams, creeks and rivers flow (cubic feet per second), and thus the lakes in & out that way too, the less the skeeters are. Those levels have been tapering off a bit (slowing) so it stands to reason slower waters are allowing more larvae to remain and hatch.

a reply to: LookingAtMars

EEE 3000% more deadly than covids

a reply to: Nyiah

Boggy or not....and by the way, don't forget clay...lots of damn clay in the soil....why wait until September if it is so important to spray?
It's already getting cooler....I expect most of the skeeters will be dying pretty soon anyway.

ETA
FTR.....not seen one of them yet.
In fact, not many yellow jackets either....yet.
Maybe we have plenty of birds and bats doing their jobs??

a reply to: DontTreadOnMe

The yellow jackets have been at my place. Wasps and dragon flys too!

originally posted by: DontTreadOnMe
a reply to: Nyiah

Boggy or not....and by the way, don't forget clay...lots of damn clay in the soil....why wait until September if it is so important to spray?
It's already getting cooler....I expect most of the skeeters will be dying pretty soon anyway.

Not entirely sure there. My neighbors, majority of them area natives, have insisted for the past few years that the season are shifting, i.e beginning and ending later than they used to. I'm starting to notice they might be right based on the past few years' worth of seasons. I don't have decades of living here under my belt (yet) but maybe someone accurately managed to forecast we're trending toward a warmer and/or longer fall before winter kicks our ass again? That might (MIGHT) warrant spraying if they don't expect much in the way of chilly nights and widespread frosts for a while longer.

If that's not the case, then hell if I know. At this point, it's just spitballing anyway.

originally posted by: JinMI
a reply to: DontTreadOnMe

The yellow jackets have been at my place. Wasps and dragon flys too!

I have wasps building nests in my evergreens. Been spraying like crazy every time I spot a new nest, they just keep picking other spots and building again. I though that was mildly unusual. They're determined bastards, but don't usually come back and keep at it like that so close to a sprayed area. I'm not sure what to make of it.


Oddly, we have NOT seen any Goldfinches or Hummingbirds this year, either. Both of those show up like clockwork by mid-summer at the latest. Not one of 'em so far.

By the way, read this in the old AOL voice: "You've got mail"

a reply to: Nyiah
I have noticed that snow doesn't really kick in until after Christmas, it used to be more like about a week after Thanksgiving.


Also, we've heard finches like usual.
Try planting some coreopsis, or another yellow flower.
They are attracted to yellow....or maybe they just LOVE the seeds....but I'd have at least a half dozen munching the seeds late summer.

originally posted by: DontTreadOnMe
a reply to: Nyiah
I have noticed that snow doesn't really kick in until after Christmas, it used to be more like about a week after Thanksgiving.


Also, we've heard finches like usual.
Try planting some coreopsis, or another yellow flower.
They are attracted to yellow....or maybe they just LOVE the seeds....but I'd have at least a half dozen munching the seeds late summer.

That's something my mother mentioned once (she's native to the metro) She swore the (light) snow used to start just after Halloween, and that winters used to be colder for longer stretches at a time in the freeze-thaw winter pattern. It could certainly be that the season patterns and such are slowly changing over time.

The Goldfinches might have been after seeds indeed, our marigolds my younger kid grows every year never even budded this year. We grew 3 different types of them, SOMETHING should have flowered, so what the hell? Assuming they're drawn to seeds more than I thought, that could be why they haven't shown up.

The hummingbirds go after a Hibiscus bush in the back yard, it's always loaded with flowers for them. Nobody showed up, it's odd. Even put out the hummingbird feeder for good measure, still nothing.

The only real oddball change to the wildlife around here is beavers. I've had a hell of a time driving off a beaver that suddenly showed up a while back & keeps going after my tomatoes in an elevated planter. There's enough neighbors with the same problem with the same animal that we're thinking it's probably more than one of them, and for some reason, their usual food sources aren't dependable this year.

For what it's worth, my dad's prediction for the winter isn't a nice one. His Old Farmer intuition from observing plants, wildlife and weather this year says a "deceptively warm autumn, then BAM! A very hard winter." Dammit dad, I like winter, but that's not what I want to hear

originally posted by: carewemust

originally posted by: rickymouse
They are spraying Merus 3 from what I read, it isn't very toxic to most people, but people who have certain allergies could suffer a bit since it is a naturally derived toxin from flowers that people might be allergic to. If I lived down there I think I would probably stay indoors when they are spraying the stuff and for half a day after.

Whitmer likes shutting down the state. She can do it now, just to be sure.

If I was afraid of mosquitoes, I couldn't live in the U.P. I just let one go out of a bowl in the fridge, I threw him out the patio door this evening. I tried getting her or him out of the fridge last night, but it wanted to hang around the light, it was sleeping in the bowl till it woke up. I didn't kill it, I made it suffer, it will be colder outside tonight than it is in the fridge.

Another excuse to harm and eventually kill us. Shocker.

Michigan is spraying at least 10 counties with poision.

...yet you fail to name the poison