Scientists explore new ways to target mosquitos as warming climate expands threat

Mosquitoes kill more people than any other animal on the planet. With a warming climate, their season is lasting longer, giving them ample time to spread dangerous diseases like Zika, West Nile virus, and dengue fever. Ben Tracy of Climate Central reports on how scientists are finding innovative ways to combat these disease-spreading mosquitoes.

Ben Tracy visits the San Gabriel Valley Mosquito and Vector Control District in California, where they are releasing thousands of male mosquitoes infected with a bacteria called Wolbachia. Tristan Hallum, the Director of Scientific Programs for the district, explains that these male mosquitoes are sterile and cannot transmit diseases. Hallum and his team release nearly half a million mosquitoes every week in the San Gabriel Valley.

Stephen Dobson, President of MosquitoMate, a company that produces and releases these Wolbachia-infected mosquitoes, explains that they breed the yellow fever mosquito in their lab and then release only male mosquitoes, as they do not bite. When these sterile males mate with females, the females become sterile and cannot lay eggs, thus reducing the mosquito population.

Dobson says that this EPA-approved method can cut certain mosquito populations by 70 to 95 percent. The World Mosquito Program is using similar techniques in 16 countries, including Brazil, where they produce 110 million Wolbachia mosquitoes each week. In some areas, dengue cases have dropped by 89 percent.

As the climate continues to warm, mosquito seasons are becoming longer and their range is expanding into previously inhospitable areas. Tristan Hallum believes that if his traps catch fewer disease-carrying females this summer, it will be a clear sign that the mosquito population in the area is decreasing.