Belgian health authorities call for increasing tiger mosquito sightings to be reported
Belgium’s health authorities are once again calling on the public to report sightings of the tiger mosquito as the insect continues to spread across the country.
Anyone who spots an Aedes albopictus mosquito can report it via www.muggensurveillance.be, according to health institute Sciensano, the Institute of Tropical Medicine (ITM) and the regional health authorities in Flanders, Brussels and Wallonia.
The reports are intended to help map the spread of the invasive species at the start of the mosquito season. The tiger mosquito is known for its aggressive biting behaviour and can transmit tropical viruses such as dengue, chikungunya and Zika after biting an infected traveller. The risk of local transmission in Belgium nevertheless remains low for now.
Spread to new municipalities
Last year, citizens confirmed sightings in ten municipalities, including five where the species had not previously been detected: Heusden, Kortenberg and Zaventem in Flanders, and Etterbeek and Watermaal-Bosvoorde in Brussels.
Additional sightings in 2025 were reported in Wijnegem, Merelbeke-Melle, Kessel-Lo and Hoegaarden in Flanders, and Ath in Wallonia. Since monitoring began in 2022, the mosquito has been detected in forty Belgian municipalities.
Field inspections have also shown that the species is beginning to establish itself locally. Inspectors confirmed last year that tiger mosquitoes successfully overwintered in Saint-Josse-ten-Noode, Wijnegem and Hoegaarden. That brings the number of municipalities where the species is considered established to eight, alongside earlier findings in Ath, Kessel-Lo, Puurs-Sint-Amands, Wilrijk and Lebbeke.
“This mosquito is likely present in more places in Belgium than has been confirmed so far,” said Sciensano researcher Javiera Rebolledo Romero. “Knowing where these mosquitoes occur helps the authorities take measures to prevent the spread of the tiger mosquito and thus avoid the risk of local transmission of diseases such as dengue, chikungunya, and Zika in the future.”
“Four years of monitoring show that the tiger mosquito is not only being introduced into Belgium but is also starting to establish itself here,” added ITM entomologist Wim Van Bortel.
© PHOTO CHRISTOPHE GEYRES / ABACAPRESS.COM
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