This is Scientific Americans 60 Second Science. I'm Karen Hopkins. This will just take a minute.

It may sound strange, but scientists are celebrating the survival and spread of tens of thousands of mosquitoes they

released in Northeastern Australia. The whole thing makes more sense when you know

that these mosquitoes are not just any run-of-the-mill bloodsuckers, they're weaponized, infected with a type of bacteria that prevents the spread of

zeka, dengue, and other mosquito-born viruses.

The bacterium, called Wolbachia, is present naturally in nearly two-thirds of all insect species.

Although it's not usually found in 80s Egypti, the mosquito responsible for spreading

zeka, dengue, yellow Fever, and Chicken Gune.

But when researchers introduced Wolbachia

into mosquitoes in the lab a decade ago,

the bacteria bollocks the skaters,

making them unable to transmit their viruses to humans.

Which gives public health experts hope that by releasing big groups of

Wobakia infected mosquitoes into problem areas,

they'll spread Wobakia to the local populations, making them incapable of transmitting

viral diseases to people.

But a big question was, will the weaponized mosquitoes remain contained where they're

let loose or will they move enough to

mingle with their wild brethren. So researchers in Australia ran a test. In

2013 they released some 35,000 Wolbakia carrying 80s Egypti at one site, 131,000 at a second site, and

286,000 at a third site, all in the city of cans.

And they tracked the insect's dispersal.

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