The unintended consequences of warm weather lingering in Utah

SALT LAKE CITY — Utah has had a longer-than-normal fall this year, and the warm weather has led to some unintended consequences.

 

“We did have quite a warm year, as you know. And so, warm air leads to warm water, and warm water, especially with excess nutrients in it, leads to harmful algal blooms,” said Dr. Sabo, assistant state veterinarian for Utah.

According to Sabo, there are still more than a dozen active algal blooms in Utah’s lakes, rivers and ponds.

“Given that the air temperatures are decreasing in general, even though it’s a little late, we have had sort of a persistent number of harmful algae blooms. So today we’ve got 12 water bodies across the state that are warning advisory and nine that are a health watch.”

The good news is that Utah Lake and the Jordan River are no longer on the list. However, Sabo advises consistently checking the Division of Water Quality’s website for updates on which water bodies to avoid, especially before taking a pet near that water.

Read more: Warm November delays ski season

Sabo said mosquitoes have also taken longer to go dormant this season due to the lingering warm weather, resulting in an increased number of mosquitoes carrying the West Nile virus.

“If a mosquito feeds on a bird that has the West Nile virus, then it can bite a horse, or a human even, and cause neurologic diseases and sometimes death in those species, especially if they’re not vaccinated.”

The number of horses that have tested positive for the West Nile virus has increased, Sabo said, and all the horses that died from the virus were ones that had not been vaccinated.

Sabo said you can get the horse vaccine through your veterinarian and at most farm supply stores.

Read more: Keeping pets safe during cold winter months