First record of mosquitoes living in Iceland

For the first time on record, mosquitoes have been found living in Iceland. Three individuals of the species Culiseta annulata were collected on October 16 from wine ropes hung to attract moths in a garden in Kjós, about 30 kilometers north of Reykjavík, a citizen scientist who reported the find said, and an entomologist at the Natural Science Institute of Iceland confirmed the species identification.

The insects, two females and one male, were gathered by Björn Hjaltason, who posted about the sighting to a local insect group and sent the specimens to entomologist Matthías Alfreðsson for verification. Alfreðsson described the discovery as the first record of mosquitoes occurring in the natural environment in Iceland. He noted that a single arctic mosquito specimen was once collected from an airplane at the Keflavík airport, but that specimen is no longer available for study.

How the mosquitoes arrived is not yet clear. Hjaltason suggested they may have been introduced via shipping activity at the industrial area of Grundartangi, where goods frequently arrive by vessel and container. Alfreðsson said the presence of the specimens could indicate a recent introduction but that...