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Mechan F, Bartonicek Z, Malone D, Lees RS. Unmanned aerial vehicles for surveillance and control of vectors of malaria and other vector-borne diseases. Malar J 2023; 22:23. [PMID: 36670398 PMCID: PMC9854044 DOI: 10.1186/s12936-022-04414-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/19/2021] [Accepted: 12/13/2022] [Indexed: 01/22/2023] Open
Abstract
The use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) has expanded rapidly in ecological conservation and agriculture, with a growing literature describing their potential applications in global health efforts including vector control. Vector-borne diseases carry severe public health and economic impacts to over half of the global population yet conventional approaches to the surveillance and treatment of vector habitats is typically laborious and slow. The high mobility of UAVs allows them to reach remote areas that might otherwise be inaccessible to ground-based teams. Given the rapidly expanding examples of these tools in vector control programmes, there is a need to establish the current knowledge base of applications for UAVs in this context and assess the strengths and challenges compared to conventional methodologies. This review aims to summarize the currently available knowledge on the capabilities of UAVs in both malaria control and in vector control more broadly in cases where the technology could be readily adapted to malaria vectors. This review will cover the current use of UAVs in vector habitat surveillance and deployment of control payloads, in comparison with their existing conventional approaches. Finally, this review will highlight the logistical and regulatory challenges in scaling up the use of UAVs in malaria control programmes and highlight potential future developments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Frank Mechan
- Department of Vector Biology, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Liverpool, L3 5QA UK
| | - Zikmund Bartonicek
- Innovative Vector Control Consortium (IVCC), Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Liverpool, L3 5QA UK
| | - David Malone
- Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), 500 5th Ave N, Seattle, WA 98109 USA
| | - Rosemary Susan Lees
- Department of Vector Biology, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Liverpool, L3 5QA UK
- Innovation to Impact (I2I), Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Liverpool, L3 5QA UK
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Carrasco-Escobar G, Moreno M, Fornace K, Herrera-Varela M, Manrique E, Conn JE. The use of drones for mosquito surveillance and control. Parasit Vectors 2022; 15:473. [PMID: 36527116 PMCID: PMC9758801 DOI: 10.1186/s13071-022-05580-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2022] [Accepted: 11/04/2022] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
In recent years, global health security has been threatened by the geographical expansion of vector-borne infectious diseases such as malaria, dengue, yellow fever, Zika and chikungunya. For a range of these vector-borne diseases, an increase in residual (exophagic) transmission together with ecological heterogeneity in everything from weather to local human migration and housing to mosquito species' behaviours presents many challenges to effective mosquito control. The novel use of drones (or uncrewed aerial vehicles) may play a major role in the success of mosquito surveillance and control programmes in the coming decades since the global landscape of mosquito-borne diseases and disease dynamics fluctuates frequently and there could be serious public health consequences if the issues of insecticide resistance and outdoor transmission are not adequately addressed. For controlling both aquatic and adult stages, for several years now remote sensing data have been used together with predictive modelling for risk, incidence and detection of transmission hot spots and landscape profiles in relation to mosquito-borne pathogens. The field of drone-based remote sensing is under continuous change due to new technology development, operation regulations and innovative applications. In this review we outline the opportunities and challenges for integrating drones into vector surveillance (i.e. identification of breeding sites or mapping micro-environmental composition) and control strategies (i.e. applying larval source management activities or deploying genetically modified agents) across the mosquito life-cycle. We present a five-step systematic environmental mapping strategy that we recommend be undertaken in locations where a drone is expected to be used, outline the key considerations for incorporating drone or other Earth Observation data into vector surveillance and provide two case studies of the advantages of using drones equipped with multispectral cameras. In conclusion, recent developments mean that drones can be effective for accurately conducting surveillance, assessing habitat suitability for larval and/or adult mosquitoes and implementing interventions. In addition, we briefly discuss the need to consider permissions, costs, safety/privacy perceptions and community acceptance for deploying drone activities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gabriel Carrasco-Escobar
- grid.11100.310000 0001 0673 9488Health Innovation Laboratory, Institute of Tropical Medicine “Alexander Von Humboldt”, Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia, Lima, Peru
- grid.266100.30000 0001 2107 4242School of Public Health, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, USA
| | - Marta Moreno
- grid.8991.90000 0004 0425 469XFaculty of Infectious and Tropical Diseases and Centre for Climate Change and Planetary Health, London School Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK
| | - Kimberly Fornace
- grid.8991.90000 0004 0425 469XFaculty of Infectious and Tropical Diseases and Centre for Climate Change and Planetary Health, London School Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK
- grid.8756.c0000 0001 2193 314XSchool of Biodiversity, One Health and Veterinary Medicine, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK
- grid.4280.e0000 0001 2180 6431 Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health, National University of Singapore and National University Health System, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Manuela Herrera-Varela
- grid.10689.360000 0001 0286 3748Grupo de Investigación en Entomología, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá, Colombia
| | - Edgar Manrique
- grid.11100.310000 0001 0673 9488Health Innovation Laboratory, Institute of Tropical Medicine “Alexander Von Humboldt”, Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia, Lima, Peru
| | - Jan E. Conn
- grid.238491.50000 0004 0367 6866The Wadsworth Center, New York State Department of Health, Albany, NY USA
- grid.189747.40000 0000 9554 2494Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Public Health, State University of New York, Albany, NY USA
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Fan Y, Feng H, Jin X, Yue J, Liu Y, Li Z, Feng Z, Song X, Yang G. Estimation of the nitrogen content of potato plants based on morphological parameters and visible light vegetation indices. FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2022; 13:1012070. [PMID: 36330259 PMCID: PMC9623182 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2022.1012070] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2022] [Accepted: 09/30/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Plant nitrogen content (PNC) is an important indicator to characterize the nitrogen nutrition status of crops, and quickly and efficiently obtaining the PNC information aids in fertilization management and decision-making in modern precision agriculture. This study aimed to explore the potential to improve the accuracy of estimating PNC during critical growth periods of potato by combining the visible light vegetation indices (VIs) and morphological parameters (MPs) obtained from an inexpensive UAV digital camera. First, the visible light VIs and three types of MPs, including the plant height (H), canopy coverage (CC) and canopy volume (CV), were extracted from digital images of the potato tuber formation stage (S1), tuber growth stage (S2), and starch accumulation stage (S3). Then, the correlations of VIs and MPs with the PNC were analyzed for each growth stage, and the performance of VIs and MPs in estimating PNC was explored. Finally, three methods, multiple linear regression (MLR), k-nearest neighbors, and random forest, were used to explore the effect of MPs on the estimation of potato PNC using VIs. The results showed that (i) the values of potato H and CC extracted based on UAV digital images were accurate, and the accuracy of the pre-growth stages was higher than that of the late growth stage. (ii) The estimation of potato PNC by visible light VIs was feasible, but the accuracy required further improvement. (iii) As the growing season progressed, the correlation between MPs and PNC gradually decreased, and it became more difficult to estimate the PNC. (iv) Compared with individual MP, multi-MPs can more accurately reflect the morphological structure of the crop and can further improve the accuracy of estimating PNC. (v) Visible light VIs combined with MPs improved the accuracy of estimating PNC, with the highest accuracy of the models constructed using the MLR method (S1: R 2 = 0.79, RMSE=0.27, NRMSE=8.19%; S2:R 2 = 0.80, RMSE=0.27, NRMSE=8.11%; S3: R 2 = 0.76, RMSE=0.26, NRMSE=8.63%). The results showed that the combination of visible light VIs and morphological information obtained by a UAV digital camera could provide a feasible method for monitoring crop growth and plant nitrogen status.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yiguang Fan
- Key Laboratory of Quantitative Remote Sensing in Agriculture of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Information Technology Research Center, Beijing Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, Beijing, China
- School of Geographic, Liaoning Technical University, Fuxin, China
| | - Haikuan Feng
- Key Laboratory of Quantitative Remote Sensing in Agriculture of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Information Technology Research Center, Beijing Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, Beijing, China
- College of Agriculture, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, China
| | - Xiuliang Jin
- Key Laboratory of Crop Physiology and Ecology, Ministry of Agriculture, Institute of Crop Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Jibo Yue
- College of Information and Management Science, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Yang Liu
- Key Laboratory of Quantitative Remote Sensing in Agriculture of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Information Technology Research Center, Beijing Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, Beijing, China
- Key Lab of Smart Agriculture System, Ministry of Education, China Agricultural University, Beijing, China
| | - Zhenhai Li
- College of Geomatics, Shandong University of Science and Technology, Qingdao, China
| | - Zhihang Feng
- School of Computer and Information Technology, Beijing Jiaotong University, Beijing, China
| | - Xiaoyu Song
- Key Laboratory of Quantitative Remote Sensing in Agriculture of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Information Technology Research Center, Beijing Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Guijun Yang
- Key Laboratory of Quantitative Remote Sensing in Agriculture of Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Information Technology Research Center, Beijing Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, Beijing, China
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Kim S, Park HJ, Lee CW, Kim NY, Hwang JE, Lee BD, Park HB, An J, Baek J. Endangered plant species under differing anthropogenic interventions: how to preserve Pterygopleurum neurophyllum in Wondong wetland? PeerJ 2022; 10:e14050. [PMID: 36193426 PMCID: PMC9526420 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.14050] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2022] [Accepted: 08/23/2022] [Indexed: 01/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Endangered wetland plants are important as the potential keystone species and mediators for plant-soil interactions. Establishing conservation strategies for endangered plants is also prioritized because of the elevating extinction risk by human-induced wetland disturbances. The present study examined the factors controlling the incidence of Pterygopleurum neurophyllum, the endangered wetland plant experiencing severe habitat loss throughout Northeast Asia. Here, P. neurophyllum populations and their surrounding environments were addressed in the last natural Korean habitat to assess the possible influential factors (vegetation coverage, species richness, exotic plant species, coarse rock content, soil bulk density, and soil electroconductivity and pH) under anthropogenic wetland interventions (with or without soil disturbance). Our results showed that P. neurophyllum occurred 6 out of 32 plots in the study area. All P. neurophyllum were found in Miscanthus-dominated area, but preferred microhabitats featuring reduced vegetation coverage, increased species richness, and undisturbed soils under vegetation removal. Multimodel inference also indicated that vegetation coverage (relative importance = 1.00) and coarse rock content (relative importance = 0.70) were the major influential factors for P. neurophyllum population size, and the surviving P. neurophyllum were strictly limited to where both of them were kept lowered. Furthermore, the wetland intervention with soil disturbance had a negative effect on P. neurophyllum by creating the rocky and compacted soil surface as a result of land reclamation treatments. Conversely, the wetland intervention without soil disturbance enhanced the P. neurophyllum incidence by decreasing vegetation coverage of the overcrowding competitive plants. Overall findings reflect that the strategies to counteract habitat loss and manage the overly dense competitive plants should be necessary for conserving P. neurophyllum, as well as other wetland plants threatened by the human-induced disturbances and excessive competition intensities.
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Densovirus Oil Suspension Significantly Improves the Efficacy and Duration of Larvicidal Activity against Aedes albopictus. Viruses 2022; 14:v14030475. [PMID: 35336882 PMCID: PMC8954509 DOI: 10.3390/v14030475] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2022] [Revised: 02/16/2022] [Accepted: 02/22/2022] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Aedes albopictus is the sole vector for various mosquito-borne viruses, including dengue, chikungunya, and Zika. Ecofriendly biological agents are required to reduce the spread of these mosquito-borne infections. Mosquito densoviruses (MDVs) are entomopathogenic mosquito-specific viruses, which can reduce the capacity of isolated vectors and decrease mosquito-borne viral disease transmission. However, their variable pathogenicity restricts their commercial use. In the present study, we developed a series of novel larvicide oil suspensions (denoted Bacillus thuringiensis (Bti) oil, Ae. albopictus densovirus (AalDV-5) oil, and a mixture of AalDV-5+Bti oil), which were tested against Ae. albopictus larvae under experimental semi-field and open-field conditions. The effect of AalDV-5 on non-target species was also evaluated. The combined effect of AalDV-5+Bti was greater than that of individual toxins and was longer lasting and more persistent compared with the laboratory AalDV-5 virus strain. The virus was quantified on a weekly basis by quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) and was persistently detected in rearing water as well as in dead larvae. Wildtype densovirus is not pathogenic to non-target organisms. The present findings confirm the improved effect of a mixed microbial suspension (AalDV-5+Bti oil) larvicide against Ae. albopictus. The development and testing of these products will enable better control of the vector mosquitoes.
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Faraji A, Haas-Stapleton E, Sorensen B, Scholl M, Goodman G, Buettner J, Schon S, Lefkow N, Lewis C, Fritz B, Hoffman C, Williams G. Toys or Tools? Utilization of Unmanned Aerial Systems in Mosquito and Vector Control Programs. JOURNAL OF ECONOMIC ENTOMOLOGY 2021; 114:1896-1909. [PMID: 34117758 DOI: 10.1093/jee/toab107] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Organized mosquito control programs (MCP) in the United States have been protecting public health since the early 1900s. These programs utilize integrated mosquito management for surveillance and control measures to enhance quality of life and protect the public from mosquito-borne diseases. Because much of the equipment and insecticides are developed for agriculture, MCP are left to innovate and adapt what is available to accomplish their core missions. Unmanned aerial systems (UAS) are one such innovation that are quickly being adopted by MCP. The advantages of UAS are no longer conjectural. In addition to locating mosquito larval habitats, UAS affords MCP real-time imagery, improved accuracy of aerial insecticide applications, mosquito larval detection and sampling. UAS are also leveraged for applying larvicides to water in habitats that range in size from multi-acre wetlands to small containers in urban settings. Employing UAS can reduce staff exposure to hazards and the impact associated with the use of heavy equipment in sensitive habitats. UAS are utilized by MCP nationally and their use will continue to increase as technology advances and regulations change. Current impediments include a dearth of major UAS manufacturers of equipment that is tailor-made for mosquito control, pesticides that are optimized for application via UAS and regulations that limit the access of UAS to national airspace. This manuscript highlights the strengths and weaknesses of UAS within MCP, provides an update on systems and methods used, and charts the future direction of UAS technology within MCP tasked with public health protection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ary Faraji
- Salt Lake City Mosquito Abatement District, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, USA
| | | | - Brad Sorensen
- Salt Lake City Mosquito Abatement District, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, USA
| | - Marty Scholl
- Sacramento-Yolo Mosquito and Vector Control District, Elk Grove, CA 95624, USA
| | - Gary Goodman
- Sacramento-Yolo Mosquito and Vector Control District, Elk Grove, CA 95624, USA
| | - Joel Buettner
- Placer Mosquito and Vector Control District, Roseville, CA 95678, USA
| | - Scott Schon
- Placer Mosquito and Vector Control District, Roseville, CA 95678, USA
| | - Nicholas Lefkow
- Lee County Mosquito/Hyacinth Control District, Lehigh Acres, FL 33971, USA
| | - Colin Lewis
- Lee County Mosquito/Hyacinth Control District, Lehigh Acres, FL 33971, USA
| | - Bradley Fritz
- USDA ARS Aerial Application Technology Research Unit, College Station, TX 77845, USA
| | - Clint Hoffman
- Innovative Vector Control Consortium, Liverpool L3 5QA, UK
| | - Greg Williams
- Hudson Regional Health Commission, Secaucus, NJ 07094, USA
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RGB Indices and Canopy Height Modelling for Mapping Tidal Marsh Biomass from a Small Unmanned Aerial System. REMOTE SENSING 2021. [DOI: 10.3390/rs13173406] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Coastal tidal marshes are essential ecosystems for both economic and ecological reasons. They necessitate regular monitoring as the effects of climate change begin to be manifested in changes to marsh vegetation healthiness. Small unmanned aerial systems (sUAS) build upon previously established remote sensing techniques to monitor a variety of vegetation health metrics, including biomass, with improved flexibility and affordability of data acquisition. The goal of this study was to establish the use of RGB-based vegetation indices for mapping and monitoring tidal marsh vegetation (i.e., Spartina alterniflora) biomass. Flights over tidal marsh study sites were conducted using a multi-spectral camera on a quadcopter sUAS near vegetation peak growth. A number of RGB indices were extracted to build a non-linear biomass model. A canopy height model was developed using sUAS-derived digital surface models and LiDAR-derived digital terrain models to assess its contribution to the biomass model. Results found that the distance-based RGB indices outperformed the regular radio-based indices in coastal marshes. The best-performing biomass models used the triangular greenness index (TGI; R2 = 0.39) and excess green index (ExG; R2 = 0.376). The estimated biomass revealed high biomass predictions at the fertilized marsh plots in the Long-Term Research in Environmental Biology (LTREB) project at the study site. The sUAS-extracted canopy height was not statistically significant in biomass estimation but showed similar explanatory power to other studies. Due to the lack of biomass samples in the inner estuary, the proposed biomass model in low marsh does not perform as well as the high marsh that is close to shore and accessible for biomass sampling. Further research of low marsh is required to better understand the best conditions for S. alterniflora biomass estimation using sUAS as an on-demand, personal remote sensing tool.
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Rocha EM, Katak RDM, Campos de Oliveira J, Araujo MDS, Carlos BC, Galizi R, Tripet F, Marinotti O, Souza-Neto JA. Vector-Focused Approaches to Curb Malaria Transmission in the Brazilian Amazon: An Overview of Current and Future Challenges and Strategies. Trop Med Infect Dis 2020; 5:E161. [PMID: 33092228 PMCID: PMC7709627 DOI: 10.3390/tropicalmed5040161] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/18/2020] [Revised: 10/10/2020] [Accepted: 10/13/2020] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
Abstract
In Brazil, malaria transmission is mostly confined to the Amazon, where substantial progress has been made towards disease control in the past decade. Vector control has been historically considered a fundamental part of the main malaria control programs implemented in Brazil. However, the conventional vector-control tools have been insufficient to control or eliminate local vector populations due to the complexity of the Amazonian rainforest environment and ecological features of malaria vector species in the Amazon, especially Anopheles darlingi. Malaria elimination in Brazil and worldwide eradication will require a combination of conventional and new approaches that takes into account the regional specificities of vector populations and malaria transmission dynamics. Here we present an overview on both conventional and novel promising vector-focused tools to curb malaria transmission in the Brazilian Amazon. If well designed and employed, vector-based approaches may improve the implementation of malaria-control programs, particularly in remote or difficult-to-access areas and in regions where existing interventions have been unable to eliminate disease transmission. However, much effort still has to be put into research expanding the knowledge of neotropical malaria vectors to set the steppingstones for the optimization of conventional and development of innovative vector-control tools.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elerson Matos Rocha
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biotecnologia, Universidade Federal do Amazonas—PPGBIOTEC/UFAM, Manaus 69067-005, Brazil; (E.M.R.); (R.d.M.K.); (J.C.d.O.)
| | - Ricardo de Melo Katak
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biotecnologia, Universidade Federal do Amazonas—PPGBIOTEC/UFAM, Manaus 69067-005, Brazil; (E.M.R.); (R.d.M.K.); (J.C.d.O.)
| | - Juan Campos de Oliveira
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biotecnologia, Universidade Federal do Amazonas—PPGBIOTEC/UFAM, Manaus 69067-005, Brazil; (E.M.R.); (R.d.M.K.); (J.C.d.O.)
| | - Maisa da Silva Araujo
- Laboratory of Medical Entomology, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, FIOCRUZ RONDONIA, Porto Velho, RO 76812-245, Brazil;
| | - Bianca Cechetto Carlos
- Department of Bioprocesses and Biotechnology, School of Agricultural Sciences, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Botucatu 18610-034, Brazil;
- Central Multiuser Laboratory, School of Agricultural Sciences, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Botucatu 18610-034, Brazil
| | - Roberto Galizi
- Centre of Applied Entomology and Parasitology, School of Life Sciences, Keele University, Staffordshire ST5 5GB, UK; (R.G.); (F.T.)
| | - Frederic Tripet
- Centre of Applied Entomology and Parasitology, School of Life Sciences, Keele University, Staffordshire ST5 5GB, UK; (R.G.); (F.T.)
| | | | - Jayme A. Souza-Neto
- Department of Bioprocesses and Biotechnology, School of Agricultural Sciences, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Botucatu 18610-034, Brazil;
- Central Multiuser Laboratory, School of Agricultural Sciences, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Botucatu 18610-034, Brazil
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Johnson BJ, Manby R, Devine GJ. Further Evidence that Development and Buffer Zones Do Little To Reduce Mosquito Nuisance from Neighboring Habitat. JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN MOSQUITO CONTROL ASSOCIATION 2020; 36:204-207. [PMID: 33600590 DOI: 10.2987/20-6951.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Little is known regarding the comparative source-sink relationships between primary mosquito breeding sites (source) and neighboring (sink) environments in heterogeneous landscapes. An exploration of those relationships may provide unique insights into the utility of open-space buffer zone mitigation strategies currently being considered by urban planners to reduce contact between mosquitoes and humans. We investigated the source-sink relationships between a highly productive mosquito habitat and adjacent residential (developed) and rural (undeveloped) coastal environments. Our results suggest that source-sink relationships are unaffected by environment. This conclusion is supported by the high level of synchronicity in daily saltmarsh mosquito abundance observed among all surveyed environments (β = 0.67-0.79, P < 0.001). This synchronicity occurred despite the uniqueness of each surveyed environment and the considerable distances of open water and land (2.2-2.6 km) between them. Trap catches, which we interpret as expected mosquito biting nuisance, were high in both residential and rural coastal landscapes (309.4 ± 52.84 and 405.3 ± 62.41 mosquitoes/day, respectively). These observations suggest that existing and planned open-space buffer zones will do little to reduce the biting burden caused by highly vagile saltmarsh mosquitoes. This strengthens the need for empirically informed planning guidelines that alert urban planners to the real risks of human residential encroachment on land that is close to highly vagile mosquito habitat.
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