No, a video does not show a helicopter dropping mosquitoes in Florida
CLAIM: A video taken in Florida shows a helicopter releasing genetically modified mosquitoes that are part of an initiative backed by Bill Gates.
AP’S ASSESSMENT: False. While mosquitoes are being released in Florida as part of a disease-control initiative, they are freed slowly from boxes on the ground, not from a helicopter. And as The Associated Press reported previously, the work is not funded locally by Gates. The substance coming from the chopper appears to be smoke, and several helicopter charter companies that specialize in gender-reveal celebration agree it looks like the announcement of a baby boy.
THE FACTS: Social media users are sharing a video showing a helicopter circling while releasing a dark substance, falsely claiming the footage shows genetically modified mosquitoes being released to spread disease.
“Helicopter Dropping Mosquitos,” reads the caption on top of many versions of the video.
One Instagram post with more than 9,000 likes as of Friday shared the video with the caption: “Why is Biden Team allowing this? are these the malaria mosquitoes B.Gates ordered ?”
A tweet that was shared more than 8,000 times also claimed it showed mosquitoes tied to Gates, and asked, “Ever wonder how diseases spread so fast?”
However the footage doesn’t show mosquitoes — and the Florida mosquito program these posts reference is neither funded by Gates, nor spreading malaria.
The footage has been online since at least Aug. 27, when a user posted it to TikTok. The post includes a hashtag identifying the location as West Little River in Miami — which matches stores and signs seen in the clip. It does not mention mosquitoes, instead the text overlaying the video reads: “Miami #Que Esta Tirando?” which translates in English to, “What is it throwing?”
The users who claimed this was tied to mosquitoes are referencing work by biotech company Oxitec, which is releasing genetically modified mosquitoes in Florida in an effort to combat insect-borne diseases such as Dengue fever and the Zika virus.
As the AP has previously explained, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has helped finance Oxitec’s work abroad, but the foundation has not funded its U.S. programs. Further, the company’s genetically modified mosquitoes are not capable of transmitting malaria because they are all male, and only female mosquitoes bite.
These modified male mosquitoes are released to mate with females, passing on a genetic change in a protein that would render any female offspring unable to survive — reducing the population of the insects that can transmit disease.
Oxitec does not release these insects from helicopters, company spokesperson Jamie Lester told the AP. They are released through small boxes and the mosquitos emerge gradually over several days.
Lawrence Reeves, an entomologist at the Florida Medical Entomology Laboratory, added that it would be unrealistic to release mosquitos from the air in the quantities needed to create the dark stream seen in the video.
“Mosquitoes are fragile, and containing them at such a high density would lead to plenty of mortality,” said Reeves. “What you see in this video is inconsistent with the realities and logistics of such releases of mosquitoes to control populations.”
The AP could not confirm what substance is being released from the helicopter in the footage. But in the higher quality version on TikTok, it appears to be smoke, and several commenters suggested it was part of a gender-reveal party — where parents-to-be often release blue or pink smoke to announce the gender of a baby.
Workers at multiple private helicopter charter companies in the area and elsewhere that offer these services told the AP that it does appear to be a gender reveal.
Jose Corona, a pilot with Alamo Helicopter Tours in Texas, said that it appeared to be a gender reveal using a flare dangled below the chopper to keep it clear of the craft — a technique he hadn’t seen or used before.
Tom McDermott, a manager with Helicopter Academy in Florida, noted that the helicopter wasn’t affiliated with their company, but agreed it was a gender-reveal and the color appears to be blue — a boy.
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Associated Press writer Melissa Goldin in New York contributed this report.
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This is part of AP’s effort to address widely shared misinformation, including work with outside companies and organizations to add factual context to misleading content that is circulating online. Learn more about fact-checking at AP.