wildsingapore news: insects

Showing posts with label insects. Show all posts

Showing posts with label insects. Show all posts

PUB releases thousands of fish in Pandan Reservoir to combat midges

Channel NewsAsia 6 Sep 19;

SINGAPORE: National water agency PUB has released "tens of thousands" of fish into Pandan Reservoir, the latest measure employed to try to control the midge pupae population, it said on Friday (Sep 6).

The release of the guppies, mollies and swordtails into the reservoir was done in a controlled manner that does not affect its ecosystem, PUB said in a Facebook post.

Midges, which are commonly mistaken for mosquitoes, are small insects which exist in and near water bodies.

"While these midges do not bite or spread diseases, they can be a nuisance when present in large numbers," said PUB.

Pandan Reservoir midge outbreak: Residents liken it to a 'horror movie', says Member of Parliament

TESSA OH Today Online 2 Sep 19;

SINGAPORE — Residents living around the Pandan Reservoir said that the recent outbreak of midges in the area is like being “in a horror movie”, Member of Parliament (MP) Foo Mee Har said on Monday (Sept 2).

Describing it as the “most severe” outbreak that residents have witnessed, Ms Foo, MP for the West Coast Group Representative Constituency (GRC), added that the midges stick to clothes and hair, and residents have found swarms of them in corridors, lifts, bus stops and in their homes.

Responding to questions from three MPs, including Ms Foo, Environment and Water Resources Minister Masagos Zulkifli said that the sudden spike in midge activity can be attributed to the recent spell of unusually hot weather, which has hastened the growth process of the midges.

“With climate change, we will experience more extreme weather, which will have a corresponding response from nature,” he said.

21% more mosquito breeding habitats destroyed in 2018 through use of Gravitrap system

Channel NewsAsia 23 Aug 19;

SINGAPORE: The National Environment Agency (NEA) on Friday (Aug 23) said that its Gravitrap system - which is designed to attract and trap female Aedes mosquitoes looking for sites to lay their eggs - enabled it to detect and destroy 21 per cent more breeding habitats in 2018 compared to the previous year.

Gravitraps have also been useful in helping NEA remove a large number of Aedes aegypti adult mosquitoes, including infected female mosquitoes, the agency said in a media release.

About 50,000 Gravitraps have been deployed at Housing and Development Board (HDB) estates islandwide since NEA began using the system in 2017.

Another 14,000 traps will be rolled out at landed estates and newly completed HDB areas from the second half of this year, NEA said.

Malaysia: Dengue cases at an all-time high

LOH FOON FONG The Star 10 Aug 19;

KUALA LUMPUR: Dengue fever cases in Malaysia reached an all time high, hitting nearly 80, 000 cases and 113 deaths reported from January until Aug 3.

Deputy Health Minister Lee Boon Chye expects the number to hit 150, 000 cases by year end if all out efforts are not taken to keep it under control.

The last highest number of cases recorded was in 2015 which recorded 120, 836 cases with 336 deaths.

The figures between January and Aug 3 is almost double that of last year’s figures for the same period – 42, 496 cases with 70 deaths.

PUB to carry out fogging, checks as midges multiply near Pandan Reservoir

Channel NewsAsia 1 Aug 19;

SINGAPORE: National water agency PUB will carry out inspections and fogging near Pandan Reservoir to control the rising midge population, it said on Thursday (Aug 1).

"There has been an increase in midges around the HDB blocks near Pandan Reservoir recently due to the hot and wet weather," said PUB in a Facebook post.

Midges, which are commonly mistaken for mosquitos, are small insects which exist in and near water bodies.

"While these midges do not bite or spread diseases, they can be a nuisance when present in large numbers," said PUB.

"PUB has been closely monitoring the situation and has stepped up measures at the reservoir to control the midge population."

4 more die of dengue, 9 deaths in total in 2019: MOH, NEA

Channel NewsAsia 29 Jul 19;

SINGAPORE: Four people have died from dengue in recent weeks, bringing the total number of dengue deaths this year to nine, the Ministry of Health and the National Environment Agency (NEA) said in a joint statement on Monday (Jul 29).

The four men died between Jun 30 and Jul 16, the authorities said.

The first, a 70-year-old man, who died on Jun 30, lived within a previously active dengue cluster at Hougang Avenue 5. The cluster was closed on Jul 12, with four dengue cases reported.

Three others died on Jul 16, the statement added.

4 Mandai research projects awarded $600,000 funding

Teams will study area's environmental conditions, effects of eco-tourism plans
Lee Qing Ping Straits Times 30 Jul 19;

Four local environmental research projects have been awarded a total of $600,000 to study conditions in the Mandai precinct.

Some of the projects will also help identify ways to address the impact of developments to turn the area into an eco-tourism hub.

The grants were announced yesterday and will be disbursed by Mandai Park Development (MPD), the body overseeing the precinct's development.

It envisions the area becoming an integrated nature and wildlife district that will include a new rainforest park in addition to the Singapore Zoo, Night Safari, River Safari and Bird Park, which will be moved over from Jurong.

"Having been allocated this land for development, our aim is to strive for a better outcome than before," said Dr Lee Hui Mien, MPD's vice-president of sustainable solutions.

"The additional research will allow us to proactively identify knowledge gaps and delve deeper into specific issues which may be unique to the Mandai district.

"New data could also add to the scientific advancement of our local biodiversity knowledge."

Project Wolbachia still in study phase, will not be deployed in dengue clusters: NEA

Ang Hwee Min Channel NewsAsia 24 Jul 19;

SINGAPORE: Project Wolbachia is still in the research study phase and therefore has not been deployed in dengue clusters, said the National Environment Agency (NEA) on Wednesday (Jul 24).

In a joint statement with the Ministry of Health (MOH), NEA said Project Wolbachia, which took home a distinguished award at the Minister for National Development’s R&D Awards on Tuesday, has shown great results.

The project involves infecting male Aedes mosquitoes with Wolbachia bacteria, so that when they mate with females, the latter’s eggs do not hatch. Wolbachia-infected males also do not bite.

Now in its third phase, the study areas for the project has expanded by about 3.7 times since it first began in 2016, with a 90 per cent suppression of the Aedes mosquito population in the Nee Soon and Tampines study sites.

“Such a focused approach is needed to derive good comparative results, and a consistent and comprehensive data set over time, to ensure the robustness of the study before scaling-up to more areas beyond Yishun and Tampines,” said NEA.

Bigger Aedes mosquito population identified as key reason for surge in dengue cases

Channel NewsAsia 19 Jul 19;

SINGAPORE: The Aedes aegypti mosquito population has increased by almost three times since the last major dengue outbreak in 2013, the National Environment Agency (NEA) said on Friday (Jul 19) as it outlined some of the key reasons for the high number of cases this year.

As of Thursday, there were 188 active dengue clusters in Singapore, of which more than 45 are listed as high-risk. There have also been 7,808 dengue cases so far this year, about five times more than the same period last year.

The largest dengue cluster in Woodlands, where there were 216 reported cases, has closed and is now under surveillance, NEA said.

“We are in the peak dengue season in Singapore, which usually stretches from June to October, and the region around us is similarly seeing an upsurge of dengue cases this year,” the agency said in a media advisory.

“Urgent community action is needed to eliminate all potential mosquito breeding habitats.”

More mosquitoes or mutating virus? Experts have different views on dengue spike

Ang Hwee Min Channel NewsAsia 16 Jul 19;

SINGAPORE: Singapore could see more cases of dengue than usual in 2019 after a lull of a few years, but it is not clear what is causing the current spike, infectious diseases experts told CNA.

Dengue cases rose to 666 last week, which the National Environment Agency (NEA) said was the highest recorded in a week since a previous peak in January 2016, when the number of cases hit 637.

As of 3pm on Monday (Jul 15), there were 7,438 recorded cases of dengue in Singapore, about five times more than the 1,481 cases in the same period last year, NEA said. Five people have died from dengue this year.

About 900 households fined between January and May as NEA calls for 'collective effort' to tackle dengue surge

Channel NewsAsia 23 Jun 19;

SINGAPORE: About 900 households have been fined for mosquito breeding as of May this year, said the National Environment Agency (NEA) as it called for a "national collective effort" to tackle the high number of dengue cases in Singapore.

More than 372,000 inspections were carried out islandwide between January and May this year and about 6,500 instances of mosquito breeding habitats were uncovered, said NEA in a media statement on Sunday (Jun 23).

During the same period, the proportion of breeding detected in homes in cluster areas was 74 per cent, much higher than the national average of 60 per cent.

As temperatures and urbanisation increase, fight against dengue will only get tougher

CYNTHIA CHOO Today Online 22 Jun 19;

SINGAPORE — When 28-year-old Amanda Poh was bitten by mosquitoes earlier this month while having after-work drinks at a bar, dengue fever was the “furthest thing from her mind”.

About a week later, she was down with a 40 degree fever and experienced bouts of nausea. Even then, she thought it was food poisoning.

But the fever refused to go away. Upon advice from a general practitioner, she went for a blood test at Changi General Hospital and the results confirmed she had dengue fever.

“Dengue always felt like a ‘it will happen to someone else but not me’ kind of thing, so it was a huge shock to find out that I had this virus,” said Ms Poh, a communications executive.

84-year-old woman dies from dengue in 5th fatal case this year

Channel NewsAsia 20 Jun 19;

SINGAPORE: An 84-year-old woman died from dengue last week, marking the fifth such death in Singapore this year, according to a joint statement by the National Environment Agency (NEA) and the Ministry of Health (MOH) on Thursday (Jun 20).

The woman, who died last Friday, lived within an active dengue cluster at Lorong 6 Geylang.

As of Monday, 108 dengue cases have been reported in the cluster at Geylang Road, said NEA and MOH.

Since it was notified of the cluster on Apr 26, NEA said it had detected and destroyed 64 mosquito breeding habitats.

Weekly dengue cases in Singapore spike to highest in more than 3 years

Channel NewsAsia 18 Jun 19;

SINGAPORE: There were a total of 468 reported dengue cases in the week ending Jun 15, the highest since March 2016, according to data by the National Environment Agency (NEA).

"The number of weekly reported dengue cases have more than quadrupled in the past three months," the agency said on its website.

As of 3pm on Monday (Jun 17), there were 5,261 reported cases, more than the 3,285 cases reported in the whole of 2018 and 2,772 cases in all of 2017.

The number of active dengue clusters has also more than doubled in the past month to 112, as of Monday.

There are 31 high-risk areas with 10 or more cases, including areas in Woodlands, Chai Chee and Geylang.

Malaysia: Dengue cases on the rise in Sarawak

Goh Pei Pei, Melvin Jon New Straits Times 18 Jun 19;

KUCHING: Sarawak recorded over 700 dengue cases in the first half of this year, with Kampung Ajibah Abol near here being the latest outbreak area.

As the number increases, the state health department has taken the approach that it will no longer compromise with any premises, houses or resident units that found to have Aedes breeding grounds.

Vector Borne Disease Control Unit officer of Sarawak Health Department Kuching Division, Dr Mohd Daniel Salim said RM500 compound will be issued under the Destruction of Disease-Bearing Insects Act (DDBIA) 1975.

The dengue situation in the state, particularly in Kuching, is worrying as it recorded over 200 cases this year, with Kampung Ajibah Abol, identified as the latest outbreak area, he said.

Malaysia: Fading blips of Sibuti River fireflies

CHANG YI The Borneo Post 9 Jun 19;

The fireflies will come out to illuminate the display trees along the riverbank at night.

IT was definitely a night to remember for the seven of us who went on a two-hour river cruise up the Sibuti River to survey and study fireflies.

The day started ominously with an overcast sky. Rain-laden clouds, building up on the horizon, soon released their ponderous load and blew up a storm from Miri to Bekenu-Sibuti.

Part of the team comprising Malaysian Nature Society (MNS) leader Musa Musbah and his vanguard group were already out of coverage range as they converged in Kuala Sibuti to conduct a briefing.

We, the support team from Miri, decided to proceed, braving the heavy rain and hoping for the best. The dark skies were anything but promising, dumping more rain onto the road, making it very slippery.

But the drencher did not throw a damper on the survey. It remained on target to document the fireflies of Sibuti River before they wax a distant memory.

Let’s not underestimate threat of dengue and other mosquito-borne diseases in Singapore

EUGENE K B TAN Today Online 6 Jun 19;

On May 29, a 63-year-old man who lived in Hougang Avenue 1 became the fourth person in Singapore to die from dengue this year. But Singaporeans do not seem to bat an eyelid at the disturbing trend of increasing dengue infections.

More than 4,000 dengue cases have been reported this year, exceeding the 3,285 for the whole of 2018. The number of cases reported each week has been on a steep upward trend, reaching 402 for the week ending June 1.

The National Environment Agency (NEA) anticipates more dengue cases in the warmer months ahead, prompting it to bring forward its annual dengue-prevention programme.

Have we become indifferent to mosquito-borne public health threats? Are there inadequacies with how we are combating the dengue threat?

379 dengue cases recorded last week, highest since March 2016: NEA

Channel NewsAsia 1 Jun 19;

SINGAPORE: There were 379 dengue cases recorded last week, which is the highest weekly number since March 2016, the National Environment Agency (NEA) said in an advisory on Saturday (Jun 1).

"The number of weekly reported dengue cases have been on an upward trend, and have more than tripled in the past nine weeks. We have not seen such a high weekly number since March 2016," NEA said.

The agency also added that the peak dengue season has set in.

63-year-old man dies from dengue in 4th death this year

Channel NewsAsia 31 May 19;

SINGAPORE: A 63-year-old man has become the fourth person to die from dengue this year, the Ministry of Health (MOH) and the National Environment Agency (NEA) said on Friday (May 31).

The man died on Wednesday, MOH and NEA added.

“The patient’s residence at Hougang Ave 1 is not an active dengue cluster. Nonetheless, vector control operations to kill adult mosquitoes and destroy any potential breeding habitats are ongoing,” MOH said.

Number of dengue cases in 2019 surpasses last year's total count

Channel NewsAsia 17 May 19;

SINGAPORE: The number of dengue cases recorded in 2019 so far has surpassed the total number of cases in 2018, figures from the National Environment Agency (NEA) show.

As of 3pm on Thursday (May 16), there have been 3,455 dengue cases in Singapore in 2019, more than the 3,285 cases reported in 2018 and 2,772 cases in 2017.

Three people have died from dengue this year amid the spike in the number of cases. In March, a 71-year-old woman who lived in Ang Mo Kio Avenue 4 died from dengue.

Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)