This object has been archived because its content is outdated. You can still access it as legacy.

Background information

Context The tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus) transmits vector-borne diseases, such as dengue and chikungunya. Environmental factors such as temperature and rainfall impact the survival chance and seasonal activity of the tiger mosquito which is a serious threat for human health in Europe.

Definition The season length, in days, of the climatic suitability for the presence of the tiger mosquito is determined by temperature statistics and hours of sunlight (photoperiod). The egg hatching in spring is based on two criteria: the photoperiod should be above 11.25 hours and the spring temperature should be above 10.5 °C. The autumn diapause of the mosquito is determined by the autumn temperature that should be below 9.5 °C and the photoperiod that should be below 13.5 hours.

Data Sources The season length for tiger mosquito suitability is calculated using bias-adjusted EURO-CORDEX data for two CMIP5 scenarios with different possible future greenhouse gas emissions: RCP4.5 (medium emissions) and RCP8.5 (high emissions). The data covers the period 1971 to 2099 and statistics are averaged for 30 years in overlapping time periods set 10 years apart. Finally, the time series are averaged for the model ensemble.

Understand The duration of tiger mosquito presence is also known as the mosquito season. It begins when the insect’s eggs hatch after winter and continues until the eggs are no longer hatching (going in diapause) in autumn.

Supporting Information The data was collated on behalf of the Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S). Further information about this index can be found in the C3S documentation resources in the Climate Data Store.


Visualisation and Navigation The season length of the climatic suitability for the tiger mosquito is presented for two CMIP5 scenarios: RCP4.5 with medium greenhouse gas emissions and RCP8.5 with high greenhouse gas emissions.

Statistics for the season length of the climatic suitability for the tiger mosquito are also available via the "Explore in Detail" button as national, sub-national and trans-national area-means for which time series data can be plotted.

Climatic suitability for the tiger mosquito - season length

Content in the European Climate Data Explorer pages is delivered by the Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) implemented by ECMWF.

Disclaimer