"Jez Phillips" wrote in message
...
Hi

Grateful for advice or to hear from anyone who has experience of similar
situation.

I have a pond in my garden. My neighbour is concerned that at dusk the
pond
attracts mosquitoes, which then go off to their house and bite them. I
think
they have suffered allergic reations to the bites.
snip

I have a certain sympathy with your neighbours in that I suffer from an
alergic reaction to mosquito bites and I know it is the mozzies doing it
from various bits of evidence - including the vivd red splash on the wall
when they have been caught after the fact. :-(.
Have caught them in mid-bite (or second munch) and seen the site of the bite
swell up immediately with an alergic reaction.

Having said that, they are way out of order if they try to load the blame on
you.

As has been pointed out elsewhere mozzies breed in any piece of water,
however small.
If you can't see them wiggling in your pond, then the pond is probably
clear.
Probably the least likely place for mozzies as it is full of predators.

One likely candidate is water butts - I know we get larvae in ours.
Rainwater guttering with the wrong slope can also form little stagnant pools
in the summer.

Have they approached all properties surrounding theirs (not sure of the
maximum range of a mozzie but it is probably more than one garden's width)
and asked the entire neighbourhood to spray all their gardens with DDT (not
just ponds but any corner likely to have as much as a teacup of stagnant
water)?

If so, I would like to see them take it further - the publicity alone should
be well worth watching.
Suggesting this could also be a useful ploy to divert and dilute attention.

If they are just picking on you because they have seen your pond then they
should research more and understand the breeding cycle of mosquitoes.

They should also take steps to protect themselves e.g. by wearing insect
repellant and suitable clothing, and using insect screens in the house to
keep mozzies out, before bothering their neighbours.

Leave your pond alone - it is a haven to wildlife and a much needed
resource.

If they are keen on using illegal and dangerous insecticides then let them
spray inside their own house.

I suspect that they may be harking back to the major push years ago in
Sicily (I think) to eradicate Malaria by spraying all open water on the
island with DDT to kill off all the mozzies. AFAIR it worked but the
collateral damage must have been huge.

Would I be right in assuming that these people are somewhat elderly?

If tact and diplomacy fails completely, then invite them to sue - they
should have no chance whatsoever of getting a decision in their favour.
Don't be bullied by the ignorant.
Even if you complied with their wishes you would have to spray on an ongoing
regular basis as otherwise the pond would be open to recolonisation from
other areas of water.

To the barricades!!
Dave R