Iceland, one of the last places on Earth to be free of mosquitoes, recorded its first sighting this month.
Iceland, one of the last places on Earth to be free of mosquitoes, recorded its first sighting this month. Scientists say warming is making the country more hospitable to the insects.
With its plentiful ponds and marshes, Iceland is, in many ways, highly suitable for mosquitoes. Though the island is frigid for most of the year, it is one of the fastest-warming regions on the planet, making it increasingly welcoming to mosquitoes.
Last week, insect enthusiast Björn Hjaltason found three mosquitoes in his garden in the town of Kjós. “I could tell right away that this was something I had never seen before,” he told the Icelandic newspaper Morgunblaðið.
Hjaltason sent the mosquitoes to Matthías Alfreðsson, an insect specialist at the Icelandic Institute of Natural History, who confirmed they belonged to the species Culiseta annulata, a type of mosquito that is commonly found in Northern Europe. It remains to be seen if the insects will survive the winter and take root in Iceland.
Read More: Yale Environment 360
Photo Credit: AfroBrazilian via Wikimedia Commons
