Mandurah has been suffering through a particularly bad mosquito season over the 2020/21 summer, with both the City of Mandurah and Mail fielding countless complaints.
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"The City of Mandurah's mosquito management team needs to pick up their game with controlling the mosquitos better," Parklands resident Cade Broomhall said.
"In 2018 there was a mozzie pandemic and in 2020 they claim it was worse, and now months later we can't even walk outside without putting spray on. Something needs to be done now."
Being a city surrounded by so much water can have its drawbacks and locals have also taken to social media in droves to complain about the issue.
Lisa Wallder called for residents to collaborate and present a petition for Mandurah, Halls Head and Dudley Park to receive more spraying.
"I'm being eaten alive at home and it makes my job nearly unbearable," Ms Wallder said. "The worst is Mariners Cove."
In neighbouring Dudley Park, Shell Beech also urged the council to take action.
"Pretty bad when my granddaughter walks outside my front door in Dudley Park and gets bitten twice by mosquitos even before the front door is closed. We are like prisoners in our own home. We sit in our lounge room at night with fly spray waiting for the buzz in our ears.
"It's disgusting. Step up Mandurah council."
Unfortunately, there are no easy solutions and the season is due to a range of factors outside of the City's control.
A City of Mandurah spokesperson pointed out that the weather conditions over the past weeks and months have been the most challenging since 2010-2012.
"The current mosquito season has been extremely challenging," they said.
"So far this season, the Peel Mosquito Management Group (PMMG) has treated more than 5000 hectares.
"This is the biggest area treated since 2011/12."
The most recent treatment was done on Saturday, March 20.
According to the City there are a few environmental factors driving the increase in mosquito breeding and activity, such as tidal events, calm and humid weather and the current La Nina climactic event.
"This season's environmental conditions are very different, and have made it difficult to reduce mosquito populations as effectively as in past years," the spokesperson said.
"However, the City continues to focus on reducing mosquitoes at every opportunity during a testing season.
"The PMMG respond to each larvae hatching event using helicopter treatments (funded by Department of Health).
"These treatments stop up to 80-90 percent of mosquito larvae becoming adults."
The City of Mandurah ensures it keeps up-to-date with the latest mosquito management methods.
It currently uses two types of larvicides, S - methoprene and Bti (Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis), which are the environmentally appropriate larvacides currently available and are approved by the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority and supported by the WA Department of Health, for broad scale mosquito management.
According to the City's website they pose no adverse effects to non-target organisms or members of the public.
However, there are things each of us can do to help us get through the rest of the season, such as using insect repellents, wearing loose clothing and emptying water holding containers from around the home to reduce breeding.
These methods will help reduce the nuisance caused by summer mosquitoes and the risk posed from mosquito borne disease, specifically Ross River Virus.
The community can find out more about when and how treatments are carried out in the City of Mandurah, as well as how to protect yourself and your family from mosquitoes, here: mandurah.wa.gov.au/live/residents/health-and-safety/pest-control
