Faster ID of Mosquito Species Possible via CDC Improvements to DNA Testing Methods
A crucial step in management of mosquito-borne diseases is knowing exactly what kind of mosquitoes are present in any given locale. Are they garden-variety species that aren’t carriers of human […]
Gas Station Windshield Wash Basins: Yet Another Habitat for Mosquito Larvae
Michael Reiskind, Ph.D., found inspiration for entomological research at a gas station. “Several years ago, I noticed an Aedes albopictus adult resting on the water in a windshield wash basin […]
Entomologists Discuss Discovery’s “Mosquito” Documentary: A Live-Tweet Recap
The old adage “bad press is better than no press” has a long history, and it surely applies to coverage of insects broadly and insects that are harmful to humans, […]
CDC Releases New Data Showing Gaps Remain in Surveillance for Mosquitoes That Transmit Zika
As concerns over Zika virus have grown since 2015, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has turned to local public health professionals to compile data on distribution […]
Neighborhood Watch: How Asian Tiger Mosquito Habitat Varies From Block to Block in an Urban Setting
By Meredith Swett Walker A neighborhood watch generally keeps an eye out for potential burglars and vandals, reporting them to local law enforcement when spotted. But if you want to […]
Traces of Zika Found in Asian Tiger Mosquito in Brazil
In a recent test of Asian tiger mosquitoes (Aedes albopictus) collected in Brazil, researchers found fragments of Zika virus RNA, raising concerns that it may be carried by species other […]
Controlling the Asian Tiger Mosquito, a Potential Zika Vector, is Possible but Difficult
By Meredith Swett Walker Is there a tiger lurking in your neighborhood? The Asian tiger mosquito, Aedes albopictus, is spreading in the U.S. and its preferred habitat is urban and […]
Free Articles Provide Insight on the Asian Tiger Mosquito, Aedes albopictus
This week is National Mosquito Control Awareness Week, and the Entomological Society of America is supporting the effort with a special collection of articles about the Asian tiger mosquito. Like […]
Scientists Track Mosquitoes that Transmit Zika and Dengue by County
By Harvey Black As mosquito-borne diseases that were once rare or unseen in the United States are making their presence known in the country, a team of researchers from the […]
Zika Virus Genome Sequence Published by the Institut Pasteur
Described for the first time in Uganda in 1947, Zika is an arbovirus belonging to the same family as dengue and yellow fever. These viral diseases are transmitted by mosquitoes […]
Mosquitoes More Likely to Lay Eggs in Water Sources Near Flowers
By Josh Lancette Certain mosquitoes are more likely to lay eggs in water sources near flowers than in water sources without flowers, according to an article published in the Journal […]
Study Compares “Natural” Mosquito Repellents to DEET
By Josh Lancette Every summer while preparing for long weekends at our family cabin in the north woods of Minnesota, we’d face the same dilemmas. What food should we bring? […]
Mosquitoes Looking for Love in All the Wrong Places, Sort it Out Eventually
By Erin Weeks In the 1980s, public health officials and entomologists noticed a curious sea change in Florida. For centuries, the yellowfever mosquito (Aedes aegypti) had been one of the […]
Wolbachia Bacteria Can Control Mosquitoes with Fewer Chemicals
By Erin Weeks Imagine that a strain of bacteria living in your body had the power to protect you from deadly viruses, render you sterile, or even help give rise […]
Why Fly When You Can Hitchhike? Mosquitoes Rely on Roads to Disperse
It’s only been about a year since the tropical disease chikungunya was first spotted in the Western Hemisphere. In December 2013, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control issued a travel […]
Zika Virus: Another Threat from the Asian Tiger Mosquito
A new virus in the group that includes dengue and chikungunya is the subject of an article in the journal PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases. Originating in Africa, zika was isolated […]