Hanau (dpa/lhe) – The Asian tiger mosquito has been detected for the first time in the Main-Kinzig district. A man caught a mosquito on his property in the Klein-Auheim district of Hanau and sent it in for examination, the district said on Tuesday. In order to estimate the extent to which the tiger mosquito has spread in Klein-Auheim, the Hessian State Examination and Investigation Office in the Health Service (HLPUG) will set up a trap.
Tiger mosquitoes can transmit pathogens such as dengue and Zika viruses through their bites. In Germany, the tiger mosquito was first detected in 2007 near the German-Swiss border. According to the Ministry of Social Affairs, there have also been finds in Hesse. In 2018 and 2019, for example, the Asian tiger mosquito was detected in a residential area in Frankfurt. Also this year, the mosquito species was found for the first time in various other Hessian districts.
The risk of disease transmission is currently still very low in Germany. There are only rare individual cases of people becoming infected with pathogens that the mosquito species can absorb. Nevertheless, it is important to prevent a spread. Since the tiger mosquito lays its eggs in small pools of water, it is advisable to remove such breeding sites. Accordingly, among other things, water accumulation in flower pots and other containers should be avoided and rain barrels should be covered.
