New mosquito scare in Auckland

A disease-carrying mosquito has been found in an imported used sewage truck from Japan at the Ports of Auckland.

The Japanese rockpool mosquito, or ochlerotatus japonicus, poses a health risk as it may be a carrier of Japanese encephalitis. It was discovered at the weekend by Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry quarantine staff.

The mosquito has been found five times before in New Zealand, each time in imported used machinery from Japan.