Project Resorts to App and Traps in order to Map out The Aedes Aegypti Mosquito in Acre

05/05/2017 - 13h50

Since April of last year, residents of Rio Branco, in the state of Acre, are mapping out the Aedes Aegypti mosquito - literally. By using traps, they capture the eggs belonging to the mosquito that transmits diseases such as dengue, zika and chikungunya, and resort to an app to count and map out occurrences.

The initiative resulted from the partnership between the WWF-Brazil NGO and the city's sanitation department.

Through lectures and community visits, the NGO's technicians, as well as sanitation department inspectors, show professors and residents how to download the Aetrapp app on their phones. They also show residents how to use plastic bottles as traps (check image below).

Paper pallets inside the bottles are used to contain the eggs, which are then documented through the app. Once pictures have been taken, an algorithm counts the number of eggs deposited and uploads the information onto a map (aetrapp.org/mapa).

The results are obtained instantaneously and broken down in terms of the threat level, while infestations are given geographical coordinates, enabling the government to send health inspectors and inform residents about which neighborhoods, streets and areas are not safe.

Brazil presented 1.4 million cases of dengue in 2016 - a 5.5% drop when compared to 2015. 251 thousand cases of chikungunya were reported - almost ten times the number of cases compared to the previous year - while 208.8 thousand cases of zika were reported.

The North of Brazil presented the lowest number of dengue cases in Brazil (37,943). However, half of its municipalities are in a state of emergency, and Rio Branco, which is notorious for infestations, is on the list.

	Alvin Baez - 06.mar.2016/Reuters
	Aedes Aegypti Mosquitos

The project has struggled to grapple with a lack of technological proficiency. Cell phones with low quality cameras can also lead the app to render a particular sample invalid.

For the time being, the project has been restricted to 200 residents who are Android users in the state capital. The trial will last another eight weeks.

Coordinators intend to overcome the obstacles that have been encountered thus far and export the project to other places.

Translated by THOMAS MATHEWSON

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