Mosquito alert in south-west

DANGEROUS tiger mosquitos have been found in Lot-et-Garonne and the department is raising its alert level to show that the insect is on the increase.

The department is at present at level 0.b, which means eggs have been seen on observation traps. It is shortly to rise to 1, meaning tiger mosquitos are present and active, but there have been no cases yet of people suffering dengue fever or chikungunya, tropical diseases associated with the pest.

Traps were installed in 2010 in three sites in the department and eggs were found on two of them last year, at the Landes en Gironde motorway service station and the Agen Porte d’Aquitaine one. They were temporarily closed and disinfected.

Surveillance was increased across the department and a resident of Marmande reported seeing one of the insects there. Traps were installed and eggs found again.

In preparation for raising the alert level, the department will triple the number of communes under surveillance and start information campaigns.

The Asian tiger mosquito first appeared in France in 1999, found to have bred in water in old tyres. It is now common in the south-east but is spreading across France.

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