“Moustique tigre : sa remontée vers le nord inquiète, mais aucun foyer détecté en Normandie”

While no case of the tiger mosquito has yet been detected in the region of Quelques, the insect recognizable by its black and white stripes is moving further north. It is present in 71 metropolitan departments, a number constantly increasing since the installation of the Aedes albopictus – its scientific name – in France in 2004. Since 2010, the number of departments concerned has multiplied by ten.

The tiger mosquito has particularly colonized territories in the southern part of the country, where the concentrations of breeding sites are highest in Mediterranean departments. But it has also reached, at the doors of the Manche region, the Mayenne – where its establishment has been observed in less than 40% of the communes of this department – and Ille-et-Vilaine.

Surveillance in Normandy

In 2020, the Normandy Regional Health Agency entrusted Fredon Normandie with a surveillance mission: “This consists of setting up a network of egg-laying traps,” explains Déborah Marie, head of the invasive exotic species and species with health stakes department.

These traps are lures, places where they can come to lay their eggs rather than in water reservoirs where they usually go, in order to detect them. This year, we are beginning the fourth year of surveillance in Normandy. To date, we have not spotted any tiger mosquitoes.

These traps are installed in transit or freight transport locations. The insect uses vehicle movements to colonize new territories independently of climate issues: “What will make it move is humans. It takes advantage of car trips. The tiger mosquito is an urban mosquito that particularly likes places frequented by humans.” It is anthropophilic…

Originally from Asia, this invasive INSECT finds all the conditions conducive to its development in urban environments. This is where females encounter the most subjects to plant their proboscis and feed on blood, but also a favorable environment to lay eggs, for example, in water-filled cups left in the garden or in gutters.

Disease vector

Since May 1, 2023, a new reinforced surveillance campaign has been launched. The tiger mosquito is dangerous as it carries diseases such as dengue, chikungunya, or zika. Last year, 65 autochthonous cases of dengue, mainly in the south of France, were identified in mainland France.

For each detection of the disease, an investigation is carried out to check that the patient did not contract it abroad in areas where the virus is widely circulating, such as the Antilles.

Territory surveillance also relies on citizen reporting. At the end of April, the Ministry of Health called on individuals to report the presence of this unwanted mosquito in their commune on a dedicated website (signalement-moustique.anses.fr).

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