Mosquito Alert – A 360º citizen science observatory

Mosquito Alert is a non-profit joint citizen science project, which is coordinated by different public research centers. As such it aims to study, monitor and fight the invasion of mosquitoes that can carry diseases such as dengue, Zika, or West Nile fever. Some of the invasive species that the project targets, are the tiger mosquito and the yellow fever mosquito. To achieve this goal the project employs the Mosquito Alert app, which enables anyone to notify, with a photo, the potential discovery of one of the mosquitoes of concern, or their potential habitats in public spaces. The uploaded photo, indicated location, and other necessary information are gathered and verified by a group of expert entomologists, and displayed on a public map, where anyone can view and download the observations recorded since 2014, as well as examine the probability models created from the citizen observations.

The information, which is gathered through the Mosquito Alert app complements the scientific work in the surveillance of invasive mosquitoes, and can be utilized by public health managers to monitor and control these mosquitoes in neighborhoods and cities.