What the river brings
Tide-affected land
Logan City Council lists tide-affected land along the Logan River among the mosquito breeding sources to check. Logan River Parklands, Beenleigh's waterfront park, sits right on that edge.
Biting midges
Midges breed in moist soils, which the council says makes treatment almost impossible. It also says no registered chemical is currently available in Australia to control midge larvae.
What helps with midges
They prefer humid, overcast conditions and usually bite around dusk and dawn, and they shelter under the leaves of garden plants. Keep the lawn short, avoid gardening in the late afternoon and early morning, and run a ceiling or electric fan where you sit.
Midge or mosquito?
| Midges | Mosquitoes | |
|---|---|---|
| Where they breed | Moist soil, mud and sand | Still water: containers, drains, ponds, tidal ground |
| When they bite | Dusk and dawn, on humid, overcast days | Early evenings in the warmer months |
| Can a pest business help? | Not much: larvae can't be treated | Some, but clearing water does more |
The jobs worth a call
Termites come first. Logan City Council says routine inspections can find termites and termite damage, and it refers treatment to a private pest controller. If you spot damaged wood or mud tubes, don't touch them: photograph them and get someone in. Termite work in Queensland takes a QBCC licence as well as a pest management licence.
Rats and mice follow food and shelter. Nests in the roof or under the house, and droppings along the kitchen, are the signs to act on, because a pest business can do far more there than it can with midges at the river.
A wasp nest near a door is also worth a call. Keep people and pets away from it, and don't spray or block it.
Report, don't treat
Fire ants are the exception to all of this. Suspected nests go to the National Fire Ant Eradication Program, and Queensland law allows 24 hours.
Be wary if someone offers to
- Treat midge larvae in the ground around your house.
- Spray for fire ants before anyone has reported them.
- Promise you'll have no more mosquitoes beside the river.
What we'd actually pay for
Don't spend on the midges. We'd pay for a termite inspection, and for a rat or wasp job if you've got one. For the river insects, screens, fans and a short lawn are as good as it gets.
Want someone to look at it?
Tell us what you've seen and your postcode, and a local pest business that handles exactly that calls you to talk it through.
