mosquitos, gnats, etc on central coast? (Berkeley, Lompoc: vs, areas, build)

[hodologica]

Hello,
I've visited Cali just once: Berkeley in July, and there were no mosquitos in town. I spent many hours in the eucalyptus/brushy hills above town and encountered maybe 2 mosquitos up there... i.e. virtually zero. And there were no other biting insects, nor any flies or gnats with an annoying affinity for humans.

Is this true on the central coast, and is it true year-round? Are there any seaside vs inland differences (or other microclimatic differences) in vexatious insects? I'm looking at SLO, SB, Lompoc, Morro Bay, Grover Beach, etc. I basically like to be outdoors as much as I possibly can, especially in the mountains and where few people are around.

[Steve97415]

In general, mosquito populations are low along the West Coast because a Mediterranean climate is hostile to their life cycle. Mosquitos generally breed in the spring and need to spend a larval period in an environment of stagnant water. But spring is the end of the rainy season. From June through October there is little if any rain at all and most seasonal wetlands dry up. And since the Coast Range provides fairly consistent drainage toward the coast, most bodies of water (rivers and streams) on the windward side are in constant motion. There are always small amounts of stagnant water here and there and no place is entirely mosquito-free, but you can't compare it to places that have permanent ponds and lakes during the summer. Gnats are sometimes found in the countryside, but they are usually just swarming gnats and not those that bite.
There are differences inland, and some of the areas up in the Sierras can be quite buggy from July through October because of snow-melt ponding where mosquitos are able to breed during summer and build up significant populations.