Why Have Mosquitoes Appeared in Iceland for the First Time?

October 24, 2025 | 11:11 pm

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Iceland is no longer mosquito-free, after three mosquitoes—two females and one male—found in a garden of private residence in the Kjósarhreppur (Kjs) area between October 16 and 18, 2025.

The discovery was revealed by a local resident, Björn Hjaltason, through a post in a Facebook group called Skordýr á Íslandi  (Insects in Iceland). "I could tell right away that this was something I had never seen before," said Hjaltason's post, as quoted from Live Science, October 21, 2025.

An entomologist at the Icelandic Institute of Natural History, Matthías Alfreðsson, confirmed that the mosquitoes belong to the species Culiseta annulata. Hjaltason then wrote, "The last fortress has fallen," although it has not been confirmed whether these mosquitoes can survive the Icelandic winter.

Iceland has been known as one of the mosquito-free countries, although neighboring countries such as Norway, Scotland, and Greenland have various species of these insects. Scientists speculate that mosquitoes cannot breed in the extreme climate conditions of Iceland.

Gísli Már Gíslason, professor emeritus of limnology at the University of Iceland, said that mosquitoes occasionally brought to Iceland by airplanes have never been able to establish a population. The country has many ponds and marshes suitable for egg-laying. However, the repeated freezing and t...