Collier Mosquito Control District launched a pilot program to use sterile insect techniques to target Aedes aegypti mosquitoes in Golden Gate City. This invasive species can spread diseases, such as dengue, Zika and chikungunya and is resistant to some traditional mosquito control methods.

Golden Gate City was selected for this program because Ae. Aegypti breed in small containers of water that are typically near humans in residential and urban areas, and Golden Gate City provides ample breeding opportunities for the mosquito, district officials said.

SIT involves releasing sterile male mosquitoes, which do not bite, into the wild, causing the eggs laid by the females they mate with to be nonviable. These mosquitoes are bred in captivity from mosquitoes collected locally and are then sterilized using a low dose of X-rays before being released.

These sterile male mosquitoes compete with wild male mosquitoes to attract mates and lower the overall mosquito population in the treatment area.

The district began trapping mosquitoes in Golden Gate City last week to collect data and population numbers, with releases beginning in the spring and continuing until the end of peak mosquito season sometime in the fall.