You could be breeding potentially dangerous mosquitoes in your own garden without even realising it.

A dog’s water bowl, a child’s toy, a forgotten bucket or even a flowerpot containing a tiny amount of stagnant water can provide exactly what the Asian Tiger mosquito needs to reproduce.

The Asian Tiger mosquito is smaller than most mosquitoes and has a very distinctive white band across its back. Officially known as Aedes albopictus, it has for some years been setting up home in our international community on the Costa del Sol.

This is not good as a bite from one of these mosquitoes can leave more than a red bump and itchy skin. Originally from Southeast Asia, the females can potentially transmit serious diseases including dengue, Zika and Chikungunya.

The problem is taken seriously. In 2026 the Junta de Andalucía has strengthened its surveillance of the Asian Tiger mosquito, including monitoring for these diseases.

The first and most important rule is to ensure there is no still or stagnant water available for them to lay their eggs.

This includes baby pools, flowerpots, birdbaths, dog water bowls, bottles, buckets, vases, toys, rubbish bins and even tyres.  Swimming pools, particularly half-empty pools, wells, cisterns and other water containers should be covered and drains and gutters checked.

Dog water bowls should be changed and cleaned frequently and children’s toys checked to keep everything fresh or dry.

Most bites will simply be another itchy red bump, but if you develop headaches, fever, abnormal swelling or nausea, please do visit a doctor.

The Government is taking this issue seriously; so should we.  Keeping stagnant water to a minimum is something we can all do to help keep this potentially dangerous invader at bay.

Five visitors spent a mere 17 minutes inside one of the restricted corners of Granada’s Alhambra, but that was long enough for one of them to bring down a protected and historical archaeological pillar while apparently filming a parkour stunt. Police are now trying to work out who they were. 

CCTV cameras captured the group’s entire visit

Security cameras at the Alhambra recorded five people entering through the Puerta de la Justicia (Gate of Justice) at 4.09pm on Friday August 28, according to the Patronato de la Alhambra y Generalife, the body that manages the site. They made their way to the Casa del Mufti, a non-public archaeological area next to the Palacio de Carlos V (Palace of Charles V) that holds protected remains not normally open to visitors.

One jump was enough to destroy a protected pillar 

Footage reviewed by Alhambra staff appears to show the group setting up a camera to film themselves performing jumps in the restricted zone, followed by one of them knocking down an archaeological pillar in the process, the Patronato said. 

The whole visit lasted just 17 minutes, while cameras showed the group leaving through the Puerta de los Carros (Gate of the Carts) and the Torre de las Cabezas (Tower of the Heads) at around 4.26pm, apparently without realising, or without stopping to report, what they had left behind.

Visitors alerted staff before the group could slip away unnoticed

Other people touring the Alhambra that afternoon noticed what was happening and told site staff, who confirmed the damage once the group had already gone. By the time security reviewed the CCTV footage in full, the five had left the grounds and had not been identified. No description of the individuals has been made public. 

Alhambra reports €12,000 in damage to the National Police 

The Patronato filed a formal complaint with the National Police on Monday August 31, handing over the security footage as evidence. Architects working for the Alhambra put the cost of repairing the pillar at around €12,000, based on an initial assessment of the archaeological damage. The figure could change once a full restoration plan is drawn up.

The National Police have opened an investigation, but no arrests have been made and the five have not yet been identified.

Millions visit the Alhambra each year, but this corner was off-limits

The Alhambra was Andalucía’s most-visited monument in 2025, drawing close to 2.7 million tourists, and remains one of the most recognisable sites in Spain. The Casa del Mufti, however, sits outside the areas open to paying visitors, and its archaeological remains are protected under Spanish heritage law. The Alhambra, along with the neighbouring Generalife gardens, has held UNESCO World Heritage status since 1984.

If you’re used to doing the supermarket run late in the evening don’t get too comfortable, there is one small change worth knowing about before you head to Mercadona: some stores are now earlier than they did during the summer.

As of  Tuesday, September 1, Mercadona has ended its special summer opening hours That extra half-hour may not sound like much, but for anyone who relies on the later opening time after work or during the evening, it could mean arriving at the supermarket to find the doors already closed.

Mercadona brings summer opening hours to an end

During July and August, Mercadona extended opening hours at numerous supermarkets, particularly in coastal areas and other destinations experiencing a large influx of tourists. Around 320 stores across Spain had their closing time extended to 10:oopm during the summer period. Some supermarkets in particularly busy tourist locations also opened on certain Sunday mornings and public holidays as part of the seasonal arrangements. 

Those extended hours have now come to an end with the close of August, so customers who had become accustomed to shopping later in the evening will now need to arrive before 9.30pm. The change is therefore most noticeable at the supermarkets that actually took part in the summer extension. Not every Mercadona in Spain is changing its closing time this week, because many stores continued to close at 9.30pm throughout July and August. 

Sunday shopping is also changing

Mercadona generally closes its supermarkets on Sundays and public holidays, although certain locations can operate under different arrangements. During the summer, some stores in areas with particularly high tourist demand opened on Sunday mornings. Those seasonal openings have now generally ended alongside the extended weekday and Saturday hours. 

This means shoppers should not assume that a supermarket which was open on a Sunday during August will continue operating on Sundays throughout September. The same applies to public holidays. Individual stores can have different opening arrangements depending on local, regional or national holidays, so the general timetable does not necessarily apply on every date.

Check your local Mercadona before setting off

There is an important reason not to rely entirely on the general 9.30pm closing time: Mercadona’s opening hours can vary between individual stores. The chain provides a store locator where customers can check the opening and closing times for their specific supermarket.

This is particularly useful when planning a shopping trip around a Sunday, public holiday or other date when special opening arrangements may apply.  For most customers, the return to the regular timetable simply means that the longer summer shopping window has disappeared. But if your local branch was one of those staying open until 10pm, the change is immediate: from September 1, the doors close at 9.30pm instead.