Some gnat relief coming, but spraying not intended to kill biting pests

City spray programs target mosquitoes

(Jody Green/Nebraska Extension educator)

Some reprieve is on the way from the swarms of gnats that have been terrorizing eastern South Dakotans since late last month. But don’t expect total relief from the public spraying that’s about to commence in communities across the region.

Many municipalities, both large and small, each spring and summer attempt to bring peace to backyards and ball diamonds by spraying and fogging. And in Sioux Falls, that starts Monday night when the Sioux Falls Health Department sends out a fleet of trucks to targeted parts of town, including along the bike trail system.

However, the Aqua Reslin chemical Sioux Falls and many other cities use in the spray is intended and targeted for mosquitoes — not gnats. Still, vector experts say it will bring down some of the gnat populations in those targeted areas.

“Inadvertently, this will handle some of the gnats, because gnats and mosquitos occupy similar spaces,” said Denise Patton, the city of Sioux Falls’ vector control program coordinator. “It’s not meant to be a complete control of them, but as we get a little bit further into June, we’ll start to see those numbers drop.”

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The city of Sioux Falls targets stagnate water sources where mosquitoes breed. Gnats, on the other hand, breed in moving, or flowing, water sources. And while mosquitoes are most active around dawn and dusk, gnats are active throughout the day.

Weather conditions permitting, Sioux Falls will start spraying Monday evening at 8:30 p.m., continuing until 1 a.m. Tuesday. Zones 7, 10, 11, 15, and 16 (as noted in the image below) will be where spraying takes place. Additionally, the Health Department will spray the city bike trail one to two times a week between 3 a.m. and 7 a.m. or in the evening between 10 p.m. and 1 a.m.