South Miami to Become Test Ground for Anti-Zika, Wolbachia-Carrying Mosquitoes | Miami New Times

As another hot AF summer commences in Miami, mosquitoes will once again be unavoidable. Testing is still underway as scientists work to develop a Zika vaccine, but in the meantime, public health officials’ best advice for preventing transmission seems to be just telling people not to get bit.

In South Miami, though, city leaders are hoping to reduce the number of Zika-transmitting mosquitoes altogether through a novel approach. On Tuesday, the city commission unanimously voted to allow the county to release batches of special mosquitoes that could knock out the city’s local population of disease-carrying skeeters.

The experiment “has the potential to save lives with no downsides to our residents,” says Mayor Philip Stoddard, who is also an FIU biology professor.