CuliFo2 & 3

CuliFo II and III: These projects are financially supported by the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMLEH) and were initiated following the CuliMo project. Within this consortium, involving similar partners as in the CuliMo project, the IfD was responsible for developing integrated biological control strategies for Aedes and Culex species in different habitats and optimizing biological control using microbial formulations such as Bti and Lysinibacillus sphaericus. Another objective was to identify additional control measures to make the management of the invasive species Aedes albopictus (Asian tiger mosquito) more effective and sustainable.

Aedes albopictus has spread across large parts of southern Germany and is now also found in cities such as Bonn, Cologne, and Berlin. Without control measures, mass proliferation of tiger mosquitoes can quickly lead to significant nuisance, making it difficult for people to use outdoor areas such as gardens. Aedes albopictus is also an efficient vector of arboviruses such as dengue, Zika, and chikungunya. Due to its increasing presence, the risk of local (autochthonous) transmission of these viruses is also rising, for example when infected individuals travel from endemic regions into areas where tiger mosquitoes are present and develop viremia.

These transmissions have already been observed hundreds of times in the Mediterranean region. In 2025, the first autochthonous transmissions of chikungunya viruses were reported in the Strasbourg area (Alsace). Control using microbial formulations such as Bti proteins is highly selective, meaning that in mass breeding sites of Aedes albopictus, Bti effectively kills mosquito larvae while remaining harmless to humans and animals and therefore does not negatively affect biodiversity or food chains. However, Bti proteins naturally degrade after a few weeks, so the effect typically lasts only about three weeks.