Mosquitoes Take Over Crete Despite 2025 Control Program

The Region of Crete launched its yearly mosquito control program in March with grand fanfare. The officials presented drones, field teams, and a new application named Mosquito Vision to the public. However, a mosquito invasion is still spreading throughout the entire region of Heraklion to Ierapetra this fall.

Maria, who teaches in Heraklion, expressed her disappointment about the lack of action from authorities. “It feels worse than last year,” she said. “We cannot sit on the balcony without being eaten alive.”

The March mosquito control program included all necessary components to prevent a mosquito invasion at the time:

• Ground and aerial spraying in breeding areas received special attention following rainfall events, as the program commenced in March rather than at a later time.
• The Mosquito Vision app was created to provide citizens with real-time information about treated areas and enable them to report new mosquito outbreaks. The app delivers tracking information primarily for the mainland but has limited coverage for the island regions.
• More resources must be allocated to urban cities with waterlogging issues, as well as to wetland areas and tourist spots.

Examples of hotspots for mosquito breeding include the Almyros wetland and Lake Agia, as well as irrigation ditches and neglected drainage system areas, which serve as ideal breeding sites. The officials declared that they monitored every area on the island.

Why Are There So Many Mosquitoes This Year?

Part of the answer is nature itself. Late spring rainfall, following the launch of the mosquito control program, resulted in puddles and standing water that remained untreated everywhere. Then the heat hit hard, and mosquito larvae thrived. Climate change only makes it trickier: longer breeding seasons, sudden storms, and more stagnant water.

An environmental officer admitted as much: “We are fighting a bigger battle each year. The insects adapt quickly, and the old seasonal model no longer fits.”

For the average family, though, that explanation is cold comfort. What they see are red bumps on their children’s arms and sleepless nights with the windows shut tight.

The situation also highlights a divide. Tourists, cocooned in hotels with sealed windows and air conditioning, often escape the worst of it. Locals, who rely on open windows for air, suffer instead.

“My guests barely notice,” said Manolis, who rents out a few rooms in Heraklion. “They eat indoors, then go back to their cool rooms. We, on the other hand, cannot sit in our garden anymore. We are the ones scratching.”

Between Apps and Itchy Nights

Authorities point to the technology. The Mosquito Vision app maps treatments in real time. Spraying teams log hundreds of visits, and monitoring continues across the island. But as one resident in Chania put it: “I do not care about dots on an app. I care about dots on my skin.”

Another added, “They spray where the tourists walk. The rest of us? We light coils, we buy sprays, we wave our arms like lunatics. That is our ‘program.'”

So far, Crete has avoided severe outbreaks of mosquito-borne disease. Still, the presence of the invasive Asian tiger mosquito on the mainland has raised alarms here, too. Health officials stress that there is no immediate risk, but parents remain cautious.

“I keep my kids inside after dark,” said Eleni from Chania. “Even five minutes outside, they come back scratching all over. It is no way to live in summer.”

What Now?

The bigger issue may be structural. A mosquito control launched in March may not be sufficient for the fall. Continuous monitoring, better drainage, and more visible neighborhood-level work may be required, especially from November on, when the mild Cretan winter kicks in and rainfall will be abundant.

In the meantime, Crete cohabits with his droning summertime parasite. Tourists escape behind the wall of whirring ACs, while the residents in the dark beat their arms and wonder why, despite drones, data, and apps, the mosquitoes still prevail.