Abstract
BackgroundAedes japonicus is an invasive vector mosquito from Southeast Asia which has been spreading across central Europe since the year 2000. Unlike the Asian Tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus) present in Spain since 2004, there has been no record of Ae. japonicus in the country until now.ResultsHere, we report the first detection of Ae. japonicus in Spain, at its southernmost location in Europe. This finding was triggered by the citizen science platform Mosquito Alert. In June 2018, a citizen sent a report via the Mosquito Alert app from the municipality of Siero in the Asturias region (NW Spain) containing pictures of a female mosquito compatible with Ae. japonicus. Further information was requested from the participant, who subsequently provided several larvae and adults that could be classified as Ae. japonicus. In July, a field mission confirmed its presence at the original site and in several locations up to 9 km away, suggesting a long-time establishment. The strong media impact in Asturias derived from the discovery raised local participation in the Mosquito Alert project, resulting in further evidence from surrounding areas.ConclusionsWhilst in the laboratory Ae. japonicus is a competent vector for several mosquito-borne pathogens, to date only West Nile virus is a concern based on field evidence. Nonetheless, this virus has yet not been detected in Asturias so the vectorial risk is currently considered low. The opportunity and effectiveness of combining citizen-sourced data to traditional surveillance methods are discussed.
Highlights
Aedes japonicus is an invasive vector mosquito from Southeast Asia which has been spreading across central Europe since the year 2000
Aedes (Hulecoetomyia) japonicus japonicus (Theobald 1901), known as the Asian bush mosquito or the Asian rockpool mosquito, is another invasive mosquito species (IMS) currently present in Europe by dispersal from its original distribution range which includes parts of China, Japan, Korea, south-eastern Russia and Taiwan. As this is the only invasive subspecies from the japonicus complex found in Europe to date, we will refer to it as Aedes japonicus in this paper
The presence of Aedes japonicus japonicus is confirmed in Spain for the first time, being the southernmost location of the species in Europe
Summary
Aedes japonicus is an invasive vector mosquito from Southeast Asia which has been spreading across central Europe since the year 2000. The present paradigm in southern Europe is the Asian tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus), an invasive mosquito species (IMS) that has invaded wide areas of all continents. Aedes (Hulecoetomyia) japonicus japonicus (Theobald 1901), known as the Asian bush mosquito or the Asian rockpool mosquito, is another IMS currently present in Europe by dispersal from its original distribution range which includes parts of China, Japan, Korea, south-eastern Russia and Taiwan. As this is the only invasive subspecies from the japonicus complex found in Europe to date, we will refer to it as Aedes japonicus in this paper.
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