Background: Culicoidesbiting midges are biological vectors of arboviruses including bluetongue virus (BTV), Schmallenberg virus (SBV) and African horse sickness virus (AHSV). Zoos are home to a wide range of ‘at risk’ exotic and native species of animals. These animals have a high value both in monetary terms, conservation significance and breeding potential. To understand the risk these viruses pose to zoo animals, it is necessary to characterise theCulicoidesfauna at zoos and determine which potential vector species are feeding on which hosts.Methods: Light-suction traps were used at two UK zoos: the Zoological Society of London (ZSL) London Zoo (LZ) and ZSL Whipsnade Zoo (WZ). Traps were run one night each week from June 2014 to June 2015.Culicoideswere morphologically identified to the species level and any blood-fedCulicoideswere processed for blood-meal analysis. DNA from blood meals was extracted and amplified using previously published primers. Sequencing was then carried out to determine the host species.Results: A total of 11,648Culicoideswere trapped and identified (n = 5880 from ZSL WZ;n = 5768 from ZSL LZ), constituting 25 different species. The six putative vectors of BTV, SBV and AHSV in northern Europe were found at both zoos and made up the majority of the total catch (n = 10,701). A total of 31 host sequences were obtained from blood-fedCulicoides. Culicoides obsoletus/C. scoticus,Culicoides dewulfi,Culicoides parrotiandCulicoides punctatuswere found to be biting a wide range of mammals including Bactrian camels, Indian rhinoceros, Asian elephants and humans, withCulicoides obsoletus/C. scoticusalso biting Darwin’s rhea. The bird-biting species,Culicoides achrayi, was found to be feeding on blackbirds, blue tits, magpies and carrion crows.Conclusions: To our knowledge, this is the first study to directly confirm blood-feeding ofCulicoideson exotic zoo animals in the UK and shows that they are able to utilise a wide range of exotic as well as native host species. Due to the susceptibility of some zoo animals toCulicoides-borne arboviruses, this study demonstrates that in the event of an outbreak of one of these viruses in the UK, preventative and mitigating measures would need to be taken.

Mosquito‐borne pathogens pose major threats to both wildlife and human health and, largely as a result of unintentional human‐aided dispersal of their vector species, their cumulative threat is on the rise. Anthropogenic climate change is expected to be an increasingly significant driver of mosquito dispersal and associated disease spread. The potential health implications of changes in the spatio–temporal distribution of mosquitoes highlight the importance of ongoing surveillance and, where necessary, vector control and other health‐management measures. The World Association of Zoos and Aquariums initiative, Project MOSI, was established to help protect vulnerable wildlife species in zoological facilities from mosquito‐transmitted pathogens by establishing a zoo‐based network of fixed mosquito monitoring sites to assist wildlife health management and contribute data on mosquito spatio–temporal distribution changes. A pilot study for Project MOSI is described here, including project rationale and results that confirm the feasibility of conducting basic standardized year‐round mosquito trapping and monitoring in a zoo environment.