First Rats, Now Chicago Is Named A Top Mosquito Haven

It's pretty clear that Chicago is on a roll this year when it comes to having annoying, biting, or bloodsucking pests in abundance (and in elected office). I'm just not sure that this is the kind of thing Chicago's tourism folks would want to brag about.

Before we get into how you can have your entire body drained of blood in less than 15 seconds by mosquitoes while you're sitting in a seat at Wrigley Field (okay, maybe that's just a bit of hyperbole), let's recap some of the pest-related accolades Chicago has received this year:

• January: Named "Rattiest City In America" for 6th straight year.
• February: Named Most Bedbug Infested City In America.
• April: Hailed for "green thinking" for bringing in feral cats to kill the rats.
• And now, in the month of May, Chicago has grabbed fifth-place overall on Orkin's "2021 Mosquito Cities List."

Maybe next month we'll see a story about how Chicago is going to bring in some feral bats to take care of the mosquito problems. We'll have to wait and see.

Patch.com:

The No. 1 worst city for mosquitoes in the United States is Los Angeles, according to Orkin. The City of Angels unseated Atlanta, where Orkin is based, in the top spot after the Georgia capital held No. 1 for seven years in a row.

Atlanta did take the No. 2 spot in 2021, with Washington, D.C., Dallas and Chicago rounding out the top five.

Let's take a moment and drop a little 1-question pop quiz on you. How many species of mosquitoes call Illinois their home?

According to SCCMad.org, "there are over 3500 different species of mosquitoes throughout the world, with at least 200 species active within the United States. Our great state alone has over 60 species of mosquitoes that have been identified within."

The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) says that the most common Illinois mosquito is the Inland Floodwater Mosquito, which bites like crazy and is capable of flying 10 miles or more from where it was hatched. If you feel the bite of a mosquito this summer, and you will, it's more than likely an Inland Floodwater Mosquito.