A senior Hong Kong official said on Wednesday that the semi-autonomous regional government may use "elephant mosquitoes," which feed on the larvae of other mosquitoes rather than blood, to control the spread of chikungunya fever.

Thousands in southern China have been infected with a mosquito-borne illness in the past few weeks, in what's considered one of the most notable outbreaks of the disease since it was first detected in the country nearly two decades ago.