Barcelona thus becomes the first major city in the European Mediterranean area to apply this strategy in an urban environment and at a neighborhood scale. Wolbachia is a bacterium found in many insects, harmless to other animals and people, which makes reproduction incompatible between carrier males and non-carrier females, resulting in non-viable eggs.
The innovative methodology involves incorporating Wolbachia into tiger mosquito eggs in the laboratory. Once the mosquitoes reach adulthood, the carrier males are selected and released into the environment. These males mate with wild, non-carrier females, preventing reproduction and thus reducing the mosquito population.
Male mosquitoes do not bite or transmit diseases, therefore they do not pose a risk to health or a nuisance to citizens. This safe technique could complement existing surveillance and control measures, avoiding the use of biocides.
The ASPB, in collaboration with Lokímica and Debug, is conducting the pilot test, releasing approximately 80,000 male mosquitoes carrying Wolbachia weekly in various parts of the city. The study, which includes two intervention sites and one control site, will evaluate the effectiveness and sustainability of the measure.
This innovative technique complements conventional control measures, such as reducing breeding sites and surveillance, forming part of an integrated management model for the sustainable control of the tiger mosquito.
