Palma
.—Santa Maria Council has signed up to the atrapaeltigre.com (catchatiger.com) campaign after the first Tiger mosquito eggs were found in Santa Maria this week.
"This year we are going to be monitoring their breeding patterns and breeding zones very closely in order to improve our measures of prevention," the local councillor for the environment, Guillem Ramis explained.
A week ago, a team of experts from Barcelona visited Santa Maria market to inform the general public about the atrapaeltigre.com campaign.
The idea of the initiative to involve the general public in reporting any sightings of Tiger mosquitoes so the authorities can then respond to the problem.
The Tiger mosquito is native to the tropical and subtropical areas of Southeast Asia; however, in the past couple of decades this species has invaded many countries throughout the world through the transport of goods and increasing international travel.
This mosquito has become a significant pest in many communities because it closely associates with humans (rather than living in wetlands), and typically flies and feeds in the daytime in addition to at dusk and dawn.
The insect is called a Tiger mosquito because its striped appearance is similar to that of a tiger.
They also carry a number of viral diseases.