Sterile mosquitoes are being used to suppress mosquitoes that have become resistant to insecticide in Fort Myers, Florida in the United States of America. The pilot project is being carried out with the support of experts from the IAEA and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), and aims to suppress populations of a disease-vector species of mosquito called Aedes aegypti which is prevalent in Florida.
Aedes aegypti mosquito populations are particularly difficult to manage using traditional control techniques as they are diurnal mosquitoes that use cryptic breeding habitats, which makes their larvae difficult to find and remove. In addition, these mosquitoes are becoming increasingly resistant to insecticides. The Lee County Mosquito Control District (LCMCD), located in southwest Florida, USA, has been working to mitigate the public health threat posed by these mosquitoes since its inception in 1958. Increasing urbanization combined with increasing resistance to insecticides has led to a nearly ubiquitous spread of Ae. aegypti throughout the county and created a need for the LCMD to identify alternative ways to combat this challenging species.
A new pilot project involving the Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) is now being used to suppress populations of disease vector mosquitoes in Fort Myers Florida. The SIT is an environmentally friendly pest control method which involves sterilizing male insects using radiation, before releasing them to mate with wild females, resulting in fewer or no offspring. The SIT pilot project is benefiting from extrabudgetary funding contributions from the IAEA’s Peaceful Uses Initiative (PUI).
Rui Cardoso Pereira, Head of the Insect Pest Control at the Joint FAO/IAEA Centre of Nuclear Techniques in food and Agriculture, says “the extrabudgetary PUI funds contributed by the USA have been instrumental for R&D based improvement of the SIT package for Aedes mosquitoes and its further transfer to pilot projects in our Member States.” Aedes aegypti mosquitoes can spread diseases such as chikungunya, dengue, yellow fever and Zika, making them a significant threat to public health and therefore contributes to the attainment of Sustainable Development Goal 3, good health.
