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Investigating Mosquito Habitat Preferences For Tree Canopy Or Building Shade In Urban Environments

Student(s):Simoni Khare, Alexandra Dziaba, Priyanka Sadagopan, John Simkin, Sarah Park, Moho Goswami, Arnav Deol, and Megha Sharma
Grade Level:Secondary School (grades 9-12, ages 14-18)
GLOBE Educator(s):Cassie Soeffing
Contributors:Dr. Rusty Low, scientist, IGES Peder Nelson, scientist, OSU Dr. Erika Podest, scientist, NASA JPL
Report Type(s):International Virtual Science Symposium Report, Mission Mosquito Report
Protocols:Mosquitoes
Presentation Video: View Video
Presentation Poster: View Document
Language(s):English
Date Submitted:02/09/2022
The world’s population continues to grow, with much of the growth occurring in urban areas. This increase in urban population growth is problematic as urban settings are ideal for the spread of mosquito-borne/vector diseases. Thus, it is vital to understand the habits underlying mosquito breeding to prevent or minimize the spread of disease. In this study, we examine whether mosquitoes, when ovipositing, prefer habitats in building shade or tree canopy shade. By setting our traps here, we also explore if mosquitoes prefer the hotter or cooler end of the heat spectrum in cities. The study consisted of setting up 4 or 6 mosquito larvae traps, made out of two-liter soda bottles cut in half with black surfaces and grass clippings as bait, in various cities: Austin, Texas; Frisco, Texas; McLean, Virginia; Colorado Springs, Colorado; Edison, New Jersey; Alameda, California. Half of the traps were in building shade and the other half were in canopy shade. After three days, the traps were observed for data collection, and if present, larvae were counted and logged via the GLOBE Observer app. We then utilized ArcGIS and spreadsheets to visualize our data. The results suggest that there is a greater number of mosquitoes breeding in habitats under canopy shade rather than building shade. To further expand our knowledge regarding habitats preferred by mosquitoes, we could observe a greater number of locations to determine if other factors, rather than shade location, impact mosquito ovipositing. A supplementary study could investigate if mosquitoes prefer tree canopies for oviposition because they consume foliage or sap. Keywords: Urban heat islands, heat spectrum, oviposition, tree canopy, building shade



Comments

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This is a great project. I like that you had so much data from different locations. What would make the tree shade different from the building shade? Was it darker/lighter?