Friday, August 6, 2010: 10:30 AM
334, David L Lawrence Convention Center
Background/Question/Methods
Understanding the nature of urban associated vector-borne diseases like West Nile virus (WNV) becomes increasingly important when half of the worlds population lives in urban environments. Often overlooked in the surveillance of mosquito-borne diseases are the effects of urban green-spaces on the epidemiology of disease in urban landscapes, especially natural or constructed urban wetlands. These wetlands bring ornithophilic mosquitoes, migratory birds, and humans in close contact with one another escalating disease risk in these areas. The mosquito communities in these areas also play significant roles in human disease risk as disease vectors move out into the surrounding urban environments.
Results/Conclusions
We evaluated mosquito communities over short urban transects at four urban wetlands located in Middlesex and Union counties in New Jersey. Transects consisted of trap sites located from inside the wetlands to 500m away from the wetlands borders into residential neighborhoods. Wetland sites had higher measures of diversity and abundances of mosquitoes, and a steady decrease in richness and abundance moving towards residential sites. The highest relative proportions of Culex spp. mosquitoes (Culex pipiens, Culex restuans) were in the most residential sites. Higher proportions of Culex spp. mosquitoes were associated with wetland systems larger than 60 total acres as opposed to wetlands of less than 60 acres.
Understanding the nature of urban associated vector-borne diseases like West Nile virus (WNV) becomes increasingly important when half of the worlds population lives in urban environments. Often overlooked in the surveillance of mosquito-borne diseases are the effects of urban green-spaces on the epidemiology of disease in urban landscapes, especially natural or constructed urban wetlands. These wetlands bring ornithophilic mosquitoes, migratory birds, and humans in close contact with one another escalating disease risk in these areas. The mosquito communities in these areas also play significant roles in human disease risk as disease vectors move out into the surrounding urban environments.
Results/Conclusions
We evaluated mosquito communities over short urban transects at four urban wetlands located in Middlesex and Union counties in New Jersey. Transects consisted of trap sites located from inside the wetlands to 500m away from the wetlands borders into residential neighborhoods. Wetland sites had higher measures of diversity and abundances of mosquitoes, and a steady decrease in richness and abundance moving towards residential sites. The highest relative proportions of Culex spp. mosquitoes (Culex pipiens, Culex restuans) were in the most residential sites. Higher proportions of Culex spp. mosquitoes were associated with wetland systems larger than 60 total acres as opposed to wetlands of less than 60 acres.
