Folks,
Apologies if this is too practical a question, but I would like
to help my town lick a problem with Schistosoma. We have a
small (1.3 million gallons) 2 « acres 19 foot deep swimming hole
(old sand quarry) here in North West Iowa. This year, for the
first time, about 10 kids have come down with classic symptoms of
swimmers itch. Although this is a very small percentage of the
swimmers, I would appreciate suggestions on some ways to solve
the problem and let campers let their kids swim. There were a
few more waterfowl (mallards and a few Canadian Geese) than
normal that visited earlier in the Spring. There are no water
fowl resident right now.
Is there a way to cut down on the snail carriers? How far do the
cercaria swim? I suggested removing algae from the sandy area.
Will copper sulphate solve the problem? I suspect being sure to
shower and towel afterwards helps but that does not solve the
problem.
Appreciate any feedback.
--
:James F. Mahaffy e-mail: mahaffy at dordt.edu
Biology Department phone: 712 722-6279
Dordt College FAX 712 722-1198
Sioux Center, Iowa 51250
