Winnipeg may have to forfeit its unofficial title as the mosquito capital of Canada.

Figures released Thursday show average mosquito counts in the city are the lowest in more than three decades.

This week's average mosquito count in traps set up across the city was three. Thursday's count was unusually low at a single mosquito per trap.

The last time the city saw figures like that was in 1980, a drought year, says city entomologist Taz Stuart. Typical averages range from 40 to 70 mosquitoes per trap.

"For mosquitoes, Winnipeg had a fantastic July with very, very low precipitation levels," said Stuart at a news conference on the grass outside the city's insect control branch office. "That, with our larviciding program, has helped assist in reducing overall nuisance and vector mosquito control numbers."

A large amount of water this spring had the team worried about a potentially bad infestation of the bloodsuckers, but a cool spring followed by hot weather — plus the city's larviciding — made the difference, Stuart said.

The city has not fogged with malathion once this year. The last time the city went an entire year without fogging for nuisance mosquitoes was in 2003.

But he warned that the city is not yet in the clear.

"I don't want to say the season's done and we're happy because we're into August," said Stuart. "There's chances and probability of us having nuisance mosquitoes. It can still happen."

Thanks to the dry conditions this year, the city would need a significant amount of rain — 76 millimetres — to produce optimal hatching grounds for mosquito larvae lying in wait. It would then take up to seven days for the bloodthirsty skeeters to hatch. Hot weather, however, could speed that hatching time in half to three days.

Even if the eggs don't hatch this year, they could stick around until next summer. Stuart said some mosquito eggs can survive from seven to 10 years, depending on conditions. But many of them would need another flood to reach those eggs — and the right weather to activate them.

"It depends on that spring and how much additional rainfalls we get next year," said Stuart. "You have a lot of eggs that could be sitting there, waiting just for the right conditions so if we get a very, very heavy, wet snowfall and thick snowfall next year and the spring again has flooding opportunities, there could be a good spring nuisance push of mosquitoes."

The almost mosquito-free summer has also been a boon for the city's pocketbook. An extra million dollars was allotted for the city's annual mosquito battle so the insect control branch could reduce its reliance on chemicals and use more biological products for larviciding.

But Stuart said the extra funds may not be needed.

"My gut feeling — if things stay like this — we won't have to access that money, which is a bonus, of course," said Stuart.