Sterile insect technique used to supress mosquito disease vectors in Florida

Sterile mosquitoes are being used to suppress mosquitoes that have become resistant to insecticide in Fort Myers, Florida, United States of America (USA). The pilot project is being carried out with the support of experts from the IAEA and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and aims to suppress populations of Aedes aegypti, a disease vector species prevalent in Florida. Aedes aegypti mosquitoes are particularly difficult to manage using traditional insect control techniques as they are diurnal and have cryptic breeding habitats, making it difficult to find and remove their larvae. Moreover, these mosquitoes are becoming increasingly resistant to insecticides. The Lee County Mosquito Control District (LCMCD) in south west Florida has been working mitigate the public health threat posed by these mosquitoes since its inception in 1958. A combination of increasing urbanization and resistance to insecticides has resulted in Aedes aegypti becoming almost ubiquitous in the county, creating a need for the LCMCD to identify alternative ways of combating this challenging species.