Scotland Sights 700 Mosquitoes, Appeals To Citizens to Forebear the Bites

The sighting of about 20 different species of mosquitos in Scotland is generating some concern amongst the citizenry.

This is even as scientists are appealing to them to brace up for the pain of more misquote bites while they study the phenomenon.

The scientists are monitoring if climate change could impact the insects as they probe the risks of them carrying disease to the UK

The insects have been sighted as far north as the Shetland islands after more than 20 different species have been identified across the country.

In the past year, more than 700 mosquito sightings have been incidented, with experts at the University of Glasgow calling on members of the public to endure being bitten by a mosquito.

This they say is part of its first of a kind study that could enable them send in more photographs of mosquitoes and their bites, including information on how and where the insects were encountered.

The Eagle reports the University of Glasgow last year, encouraging people in Scotland to be on the lookout for mosquitoes, as new research shows they can be found in many locations across the country

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That was part of its update on the collaborative project with the MRC-UofG Centre for Virus Research (CVR), the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) and the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (UKCEH).

Having established a surveillance project across the country, it had been collecting data on Scottish mosquitoes for a year.

“Now, the project is launching a new ‘citizen science’ website to encourage members of the public to report when and where they spot these insects in Scotland: https://www.mosquito-scotland.com/

“Efforts to find and trap mosquitoes across Scotland are being led by Dr Georgia Kirby and PhD Scholar Meshach Lee in the University’s School of Biodiversity, One Health and Veterinary Medicine”, it stated.

“Throughout the last year they have collected more than 1,000 mosquitoes across Scotland, in a range of locations, from parks in urban Glasgow to nature reserves on the northern coast of the country.

Now, the project’s new citizen science website has instructions on how the public can join the search by registering a mosquito sighting and uploading a photo, with tips on how to recognise these insects, and information on their ecology. People can request a follow-up from the research team about the type of mosquito they have found (if a good quality photograph is submitted), or send dead mosquitoes for identification”, it had said.

Mosquito Scotland Project revealed they also received reports of large swarms of the insects in December as the scientists at the University of Glasgow revealed activity peaked in spring and summer but they were still around until the end of the year, the Scottish Daily Express added.

The insects are typically associated with tropical climates but the research revealed they appeared everywhere from pine forests to indoors in cities such as Glasgow.

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They are natural part of the ecosystem in Scotland and currently do not pose a risk to public health with scientists monitoring whether they could carry diseases into the UK as habitats change with global warming.

Its report also quotes Dr Georgia Kirby, who is running the studya stating: “There were several areas of Scotland where we received lots of reports of bites but very few photos of the culprits – understandably, as most people don’t want to hold still for a photo while they’re being bitten by insects.

“We had suspected that midges or clegs could be responsible, but in our follow-up investigations we invariably found that these locations were swarming with mosquitoes.

“Most of these sites were areas of dense woodland, which is a key habitat for several aggressive human-biting mosquito species.”