Fire Island National Seashore Superintendent Constantine Dillon announced today that the National Park Service has approved the aerial application of Anvil ((Sumithrin) by Suffolk County Vector Control to federal lands within Fire Island National Seashore from the eastern boundary of Robert Moses State Park to the western boundary of Sailors Haven/Sunken Forest.

This action is a result of the discovery of a mosquito pool that tested positive for West Nile Virus found in the community of Saltaire at the western end of the Seashore. The positive result was announced by the Suffolk County Department of Health Services on September 7 and came from mosquitoes collected between August 22 and 24. The National Park Service consulted with the Centers for Disease Control, the Biological Resources Division of the U.S. Geological Survey, Suffolk County Department of Health Services, the National Park Service Integrated Pest Management Office in Washington, and Suffolk County Vector Control, prior to making this approval.

The positive results are from a fresh water species of mosquitoes, Culex pipiens. The vast majority of mosquitoes on Fire Island are salt marsh mosquitoes. The National Park Service has trapped hundreds of thousands of mosquitoes at Fire Island National Seashore since 1984, and has never before found a potentially harmful disease to be carried by any of them. The National Park Service collects and tests mosquitoes from nine different locations in Fire Island National Seashore and will continue to monitor its traps for any change in the current situation.

Fire Island visitors and residents are reminded to avoid mosquito-infested areas at dawn and dusk, wear protective clothing, consider use of an insect repellant, and limit the use of mosquito attractants such as colognes, perfumes, and deodorants. People most at risk for West Nile are the sick, the elderly, and small children and it is suggested they stay indoors during these times of day.

Sumithrin is a Pyrethroids insecticide. Pyrethroids are synthetic chemical insecticides that act in a similar manner to pyrethrins, which are derived from chrysanthemum flowers. Sumithrin has been registered by Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) since 1975, and is used to control adult mosquitoes. According to the EPA, Sumithrin can be used for public health mosquito control programs without posing unreasonable risks to human health when applied according to the label. Pyrethroids are considered to pose slight risks of acute toxicity to humans. At high doses, however, pyrethroids can affect the nervous system.

Pyrethroids are low in toxicity to mammals and are practically non-toxic to birds. Mosquito control formulations of permethrin quickly break down in the environment, and high temperatures and sunlight accelerate this process. However, pyrethroids are toxic to fish and to bees. For that reason, EPA has established specific

precautions on the label to reduce such risks, including restrictions that prohibit the direct application of products to open water or within 100 feet of lakes, streams, rivers or bays.

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