Spreading of Aedes albopictus on Croatian islands by boats and yachts
Enrih Merdić1, Toni Žitko2, Željka Jeličić1, Ana Klobučar3
1University of Osijek, Department of biology, Osijek, Croatia
2Institute of public Health of Split-dalmatia County, Split
3Institute of public Health dr Andrija Štampar, Zagreb
The vector Aedes albopictus has been introduced in several European countries since 1975. The vector was introduced in Europe through different ways. Unlike other mosquitoes their eggs can withstand desiccation, which allows them to travel around the world in a variety of containers. The international trade in used tyres has played a major role in such spread because tires make good
breeding sites likewise the importation of Dracanea plants, known as ‘Lucky Bamboo’.
Furthermore, public or private transport from infested areas-whether by highway, ferry or air- can contribute to the passive dispersion of Aedes albopictus. Spreading of Ae. albopictus on Croatian islands in last 3 years shows that antropochorne spreading of this species is very fast. Since 2006 the following islands were inhabit with Ae. albopictus: Vis, Hvar, Brač, Korčula, Mljet, Cres,
Lošinj, Krk. All findings on islands were close to marinas or area around them. Approximately 80.000 of yachts have been in Croatian part of Adriatic sea. In this paper reasons and models of such fast spreading were presented. Special attention was given on yachts and their value in Ae. albopictus spreading from Italy.