Tiger mosquitoes found in Amsterdam for first time

Tiger mosquitoes were found three times in Amsterdam in September, according to data from the Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA). It is the first time that the invasive mosquito, which can transmit various diseases like dengue fever, has been found in the Dutch capital.

The NVWA received a report about the tiger mosquito in Amsterdam on September 7, 15, and 22. They were spotted in the same postcode area in Amsterdam Zuidoost, including the Gaasper Camping site in Gaasperpark.

It is possible that the mosquitoes hitchhiked with tourists from southern Europe, for example, in their car or luggage. According to the platform Stop invasive exotics, tourists from Italy, France, and Spain should be careful not to bring tiger mosquitoes from their country to the Netherlands. The mosquito, originally from Asia, has now established itself in several European countries.

The Asian tiger mosquito is black and white and smaller than the mosquitoes that occur naturally in the Netherlands. The NVWA fights the mosquito to prevent populations from settling here. The watchdog removes its breeding ground and kills the mosquito larvae.

At this time, the chance that the exotic mosquitoes will transmit diseases in the Netherlands is “very small,” according to the NVWA. The National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) previously explained that certain diseases, like dengue fever, are very rare in the Netherlands, reducing the chance that mosquitoes will transmit them.