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Skip Navigation LinksHISTORY OF TRANSBOUNDARY SHIPMENTS OF STERILE INSECTS

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​​Transboundary shipment of sterile insects has taken place on a continuous basis for almost 60 years. Currently, this includes tephritid fruit fly pests, moths, new world screwworm, tsetse flies and mosquitoes. The SIT is under development for other species that may be included in future transboundary shipments. In 2022, the total number of sterile insects shipped was estimated at over 1 trillion in more than 20,000 shipments to 32 recipient countries from 24 sterile insect production facilities. During this long period and many precedents, no problems associated with possible hazards have been identified, and thus the shipment of sterile insects have never been subjected to any specific regulatory action. The table below shows the history of transboundary shipments which started in 1963 with the shipments of sterile Mexican fruit fly Anastrepha ludens, Loew, from Monterrey, Mexico, to Texas, USA. The International Guideline for Transboundary Shipments of Irradiated Sterile Insects can be accessed through the following link.

Table of transboundary shipments of sterile insects 1  

 

Year

Species

Site of production

Approximate amount shipped (million pupae/adults)

Recipient

Purpose

Fruit Flies

1963-2000

Mexican fruit fly, Anastrepha ludens

Mexico (Monterrey and Metapa)

2511

USA (Texas and San Diego)

 To assist the California and Texas Department of Agriculture in the eradication of Mexican fruit fly outbreaks

1970-2021

Mediterranean fruit fly, Ceratitis capitata

Argentina (Mendoza), Austria (Seibersdorf), Chile (Arica), Costa Rica, Guatemala (El Pino), Israel (Biofly), Mexico (Metapa), Portugal (Madeira), Spain (Valencia), USA (Hawaii)

913,851.5

Argentina (Patagonia), Belice, Bolivia (Cochabamba), Chile, Croatia, Ecuador, Italy (Procida), Greece, Guatemala, Honduras, Israel, Jordan, Mexico, Morocco (Agadir and Berkane), Nicaragua, Peru (Tacna), Spain (Canary Islands), Tunisia, USA  

For prevention, containment, suppression and eradication of the Mediterranean fruit fly

screw-worm

1990-2004

New World Screwworm (NWS) Cochliomyia hominivorax

Mexico (Tuxtla Gutierrez, Chiapas), Panama (COPEG)

108,994

Central American countries (7 countries), Libya(Tripoli), USA (Florida)

To eradicate NWS from Central America

To assist the eradication of NWS outbreaks in Libya and Florida, USA

Tsetse flies

1972-1973

Tsetse fly (Glossina tachinoides)

France (Maison Alfort, IEMVT)

0.016

Tchad (N’djamena)

Adult irradiated males for research on SIT trials

1990-2021

Tsetse fly (Glossina spp.)

Austria (Seibersdorf), Slovakia

25.5

Tanzania (Tanga)

​ Senegal (Dakar)

To assist Tsetse eradication from Tanzania and Senegal

xxx-2022

Tsetse fly (Glossina palpalis gambiensis)

Burkina Faso (IBD)

Unknown

Senegal (Dakar)

To assist Tsetse eradication from Senegal

Moths

2008

Cactus moth (Cactoblastis cactorum)

USA (Florida)

0.02132

Mexico (Yucatan Penninsula)

Eradication of incipient cactus moth outbreaks

2001-2014

Pink bollworm (Pectinophora gossypiella)

USA (Arizona)

Unknown

Mexico (Northern States)

Regional (USA and Mexico) eradication of the pink bollworm

2010-2022

Codling moth (Cydia pomonella)

Canada (Osoyoos)

Unknown

New Zealand, South Africa, USA

For SIT pilot validation

2021-2022

False codling moth (Thaumatotibia leucotreta)

South Africa

0.9

Israel

For SIT pilot validation

Mosquitoes

2017-2021

Mosquitoes (Aedes albopictus)

Italy

2.0

Albania, Montenegro, Germany, Greece

Field study and Suppression pilot

2021-2022

Mosquitoes (Aedes aegypti)

Austria (Seibersdorf)

0.476

La Reunion, France (St Denis), Dakar, Senegal

Irradiated adults for research and a suppression trial

 

 

Total

1 025 385.1

 


1Numbers are estimates from information available from mass rearing facilities in operational SIT programmes and rearing facilities in other institutions.

221,398 sterile moths were released to eradicate incipient outbreaks in Isla Mujeres and Isla Contoy of the coast of the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico. 

​​Read more on Packing, Shipping, Holding and Release of sterile insects

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