BE-RBINS-ENT Collection Project MEMO Monitoring of Exotic Mosquitoes in Belgium
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Project NEHAP
2020
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Is the number of exotic mosquito in Belgium on the rise? It is one of the questions that ITM scientists are seeking to answer. Together with their partners, they monitor 23 risk sites across Belgium, places where exotic species are most likely to enter our country.
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Digital database of mosquito species discovered during the MEMO project
The early detection of exotic mosquito species (EMS) along high-risk introduction routes before populations become established, is of paramount importance to prevent local transmission of mosquito-borne diseases. Following previous EMS surveillance projects in Belgium, a three-year national active EMS monitoring project (MEMO) started in July 2017 to detect possible foci of introduction and establishment of EMS at an early stage in Belgium.
Each year, active monitoring was implemented in 20 to 23 different Points of Entry (PoE). Different collection methods were used, including BG-Sentinel and Mosquito Magnet® traps to collect host seeking female mosquitoes, oviposition traps to detect egg-laying females, and larval sampling. The collected specimens were sorted and identified using morphological characteristics. A morphological collection of the most intact specimens was generated for future reference and housed at RBINS. Of most of the collected mosquito species, pictures were made and presented here.
This three-year project is financed by the Flemish, Walloon and Brussels governments and the FPS Public Health, Food Chain Safety and Environment in the context of the National Environment and Health Action Plan (NEHAP). The Institute of Tropical Medicine (ITM) carried out the MEMO project together with the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences (RBINS), the Royal Museum for Central Africa (RMCA), and Barcoding of Organisms and Tissues of Policy Concern (BopCo). With the support of Avia-GIS, the VECMAP® information system was used for the integration of field and laboratory data.
PARTNERSITM carries out the MEMO project together with the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences (RBINS), the Royal Museum for Central Africa (RMCA), and Barcoding of Organisms and Tissues of Policy Concern (BopCo). With the support of Avia-GIS, the VECMAP information system is used for the integration of field and laboratory data. |
