GE-R-4: Submissions for the Mückenatlas | Umweltbundesamt

GE-R-4: Submissions for the Mückenatlas

Since 2012 interested citizens have been able to submit captured mosquitoes for inclusion in the Mückenatlas. The data are used for the purpose of analysing the spread of mosquito species in Germany. At the same time this ‘tool’ raises the public’s awareness of the issues concerned. In 2016 vigorous press activity in Germany led to keen attention to the zika epidemic in Latin America at the time of the Olympic Games.

Mosquito atlas – Citizens get involved

The spreading of mosquito species which can transmit pathogens hazardous to humans is a relevant health risk. Apart from autochthonous cases of West Nile Fever, there has been no evidence yet of infections such as dengue, zika or chikungunya transmitted by mosquito bites and contracted in Germany. Nevertheless, this hazard is increasing, given the spread of mosquitoes which can act as vectors for these pathogens (cf. Indicator GE-I-5), and the concurrent presence of these pathogens which can be introduced, for instance, by travellers returning from abroad. The collection of data and information on the spread of mosquitoes is an important basic prerequisite to be met in order to facilitate preventative measures. Apart from controlling these insects – as is being done, for instance, in the Upper Rhine area – this includes especially raising awareness among the population in order to enable people to take individual protective measures. The main issue must be to prevent getting bitten, and to be able to give any medical specialist correct information in case of an infection.

On account of limited resources it is not feasible to carry out any systematic nationwide mosquito monitoring using traps baited with attractants. This is why the ZALF and the FLI launched a Citizen Science Project in 2012 – the ‘Mückenatlas’ (Mosquito Atlas)⁵⁵. Citizen Science is a participatory approach to science, in which interested amateurs – often in cooperation with full-time researchers – contribute to progress in the field of scientific findings. Such cooperations create win-win situations: Researchers obtain data collected across a wide area, while the participating citizens gain confidence and experience in handling topical issues and complex problems as well as the satisfaction to get actively involved and make constructive contributions to a worthwhile project. Especially in areas such as the health service, where personal provision plays a major role, such approaches are valuable.

Compared to a systematic scientific monitoring process regarding the spread of mosquitoes, the Citizen Science approach has its pros and cons. The focus of the captures made by means of the Citizen Science approach in a person’s every-day environment limits the representativity of the finds and entails that the finds can only reflect a section of the actual distribution. Almost two thirds of the insects submitted have to date been caught in rather urban environments such as sports fields. By comparison, rural areas are under-represented. Distorted outcomes can also be due to citizens limiting their search to unusual types of mosquitoes which is why those make up the bulk of submissions received by researchers. Relevant advantages of this approach are that captures are distributed more widely in terms of space and that in some cases, the insects are caught on private property which might not be as accessible to researchers.

Although Citizen Science cannot on its own monitor Germany’s entire mosquito population, the ‘Mückenatlas’ is an important component supplementing the monitoring process with the aid of specialised traps baited with attractants.

The indicator illustrates the number of items submitted by post. This means that each item posted is counted as an addition to the Mückenatlas, regardless of how many mosquitoes are contained in the item submitted. Most participants send only one or just a few mosquitoes per submission. However, there are also submissions which contain mosquitoes collected throughout an entire year – some by means of using private traps – and these are posted as one item.

The time series covering the postal mosquito submissions demonstrates that the population is already sensitive to the themes and issues involved in the introduction and spread of non-native mosquitoes. According to the opinion of ZALF and FLI experts, the distinct leap in submissions in 2016 can be attributed distinctly to the zika epidemic in Latin America in 2015 and 2016 which attracted a lot of attention also in Europe. The coincidence of this development with the 2016 Summer Olympics held in Brazil gave rise to intensive press activities on the issues which obviously entailed that the public kept a very close eye on the occurrence of potentially hazardous mosquitoes also in Germany. This was reflected in an unusually high number of submissions.

In Europe, the zika virus had been unknown to that date. Above all, this virus is transmitted by the yellow-fever mosquito (Aedes aegypti), but also through other species of the genus Aedes, such as the Asian Tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus). In adult humans infected, the zika virus often just produces influenza-like symptoms. However, in the unborn foetus whose pregnant mother was infected, the virus can bring about severe impairments (skull deformation) as well as disabilities. As stated by the WHO, it was estimated that 1.5 million zika cases occurred in Brazil in the period from October 2015 to July 2016. In the whole of Europe, warning messages were issued for the sake of pregnant women.

Probably, the time series covering the submissions for the Mückenatlas will continue to be influenced by such events as well as similar events either in Germany or at a global scale. Nevertheless, it can be said that the indicator fulfils its purpose, either despite or because of this scenario: The subject of the spread of mosquitoes and hazardous pathogens needs to be paid more attention, in order to facilitate more active measures.

^{55 - Früh B., Koßmann M., Roos M. 2011: Frankfurt am Main im Klimawandel. Eine Untersuchung zur städtischen Wärmebelastung. Berichte des Deutschen Wetterdienstes, Band 237. Dt. Wetterdienst. Offenbach am Main, 68 pp. https://www.dwd.de/DE/leistungen/pbfb_verlag_berichte/pdf_einzelbaende/237_pdf.pdf}