Nobody likes a mozzie bite, do they?!

Its a fact – the world’s most dangerous animal, is the mosquito. New Zealand has 16 species of mosquitoes either native or introduced.  We are very fortunate that if we get bitten here, we only get an itchy spot on our skin, not a serious disease.

To prevent the incursion of exotic Mosquitos, Health Protection officers from Nelson Marlborough Public Health have lately been undertaking surveillance work at both Picton and Waikawa Marinas, to ensure that there are no spots around our operations which could be conducive to Mosquito breeding.

Port Marlborough and Marlborough Sounds Marinas are registered as Places of First Arrival – which means we sometimes do receive international vessels here.

These vessels go through the customs clearance procedures with MPI when they arrive to ensure there are no biosecurity threats. Additionally, teams from Te Whatu Ora – Health New Zealand regularly monitor areas around port and marinas. They monitor the port and marinas for any habitat that might be suitable for mosquitoes, and have strategically placed traps to detect any unwanted mosquito species that might enter New Zealand.

Below is a picture of some common traps used at ports and marinas

Figure 1: A BG Sentinel Trap for catching adult mosquitoes

Figure 2: Adult light trap and tyre trap with water inside for sampling larvae

Keen to Help?

It’s important that we all do our bit to protect our country from these nasty things. If you find a mosquito, you can identify it by viewing information and pictures of exotic mosquitoes on the New Zealand BioSecure website here, and  there are a number of additional ways you can help keep Aotearoa free of unwanted mosquitoes:

1. Prevent their entry into NZ
   (Remove standing water on vessels, check luggage/cargo and vessel for adult mosquitoes)
2. Eliminate mosquito habitats around ports/marinas/your place!
   (See the information poster below – “Mosquitoes, why we need to clean up our own backyards”)

3. Contact public health if you suspect an exotic mosquito
   (Contact the on call Health Protection Officer via: 03 520 9999 or 03 5461800)

More below – or for easier reading, click here: Link to image