COLCHESTER — Chatham Health District says a mosquito trapped in the Babcock Pond Wildlife Management Area tested positive for the virus that causes Eastern equine encephalitis, or EEE.
The district said in an October 22 public post that it was notified by the Connecticut Department of Public Health on October 21. FOX61 reported that the mosquito was trapped near Babcock Pond on October 14. Eastern CT News has not independently obtained the laboratory result or identified the tested mosquito species.
EEE is rare but can cause serious illness. Chatham Health District says approximately 30% of people who develop severe EEE die, and many survivors have ongoing neurological problems. The district says there is no vaccine to prevent EEE and no medicine specifically used to treat it.
The district recommends preventing mosquito bites by using EPA-registered repellent, wearing loose-fitting long sleeves and pants, using permethrin-treated clothing and gear, and controlling mosquitoes around homes. Its public alert also advises limiting time outdoors between dusk and dawn, when mosquitoes are most active, and keeping window and door screens in good repair.
A Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station cumulative report updated October 6 listed the Colchester trap site at Carrier Road in the Babcock Pond Wildlife Management Area as negative at that point in the season. The newly announced result therefore reflects testing after that earlier statewide summary.
The selected file photograph shows a Culiseta melanura mosquito, a species involved in maintaining EEE virus among birds. It is an illustrative 2019 image from the CDC Public Health Image Library and Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, not the specific Colchester mosquito.