BRITS face a hit to their Spanish holidays after Canary Islands was put on alert against the dangerous "yellow fever" mosquito.
Health and tourism chiefs have issued a warning after the detection of two yellow fever mosquito larvae on the island of La Palma.
Officially known as Aedes Aegypti, these mosquitoes can spread a number of viruses including dengue, chikungunya and Zika.
Minister of health for the Canary Islands Government, Blas Trujillo, said intensive measures would be in place until the mosquitoes were eradicated.
He said analysis of the larvae had not revealed any transmissible viruses.
The Minister added that the islands have experience in eradicating the species using their surveillance system, after one was discovered in Fuerteventura in 2017.
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Local authorities at La Palma have urged residents to stay alert and experts recommended that households get rid of stagnant water in their home and on the streets.
The Canary Islands Entomological Surveillance System are currently trying to detect early adult specimens, eggs of larvae.
The programme has been activated in all health centres and pharmacies on the island.
Mosquito monitoring points have also been expanded to the port and the airport as well as in other high-risk areas including greenhouses, cemeteries, tyre dumps and banana packing plants.
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A spokesperson told express.co.uk: "Mosquitoes that bite humans need to be breeding very close to them.
"That is why the most effective measure against them is to monitor or eliminate their breeding points."
Experts say citizen and tourist collaboration is very important to monitor the invasive species in the Canary Islands.
The Public Health inspectors will analyse any bites with a survey, photograph, and home inspection for eggs.
If people spot a mosquito they must send a photo to the General Directorate of Public Health on the email [email protected], along with the geographical location of the suspected mosquito.
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People should also send photos of bites that they consider to be suspicious. This includes bites with a strong inflammatory reaction and excessive itching, which could be caused by Aedes mosquitoes.
These mosquitos are black with stripes and smaller than normal mosquitos. They are likely to appear in urban areas and stagnant waste water and usually bite during the day.
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