Comparison of Mosquito Population Between Urban Area of College Station, TX and Rural Area of Snook,TX

Authors

  • Garrett Jackson
  • Garrett Jackson

Abstract

In order to determine where to better allocate resources and pest management, we compared the mosquito population between urban and rural areas. We sampled adult mosquitoes and larvae in College Station and Snook as our representative populations. Our methods included a mosquito trap built from PVC and fine mesh for the adult mosquitoes, and a dipper to sample the larval population. Our results showed inconclusive data for the adults due to malfunction of the mosquito trap. The data for the larvae showed a higher density in urban populations however, this data maybe be deceiving due to the timing of the collection of larvae in the rural area. The rural population makeup was dominated by the Psorophora (Fabricius) (Diptera: Culicidae) species. On the other hand the urban population makeup consisted of Aedes vexans (Meigen) (Diptera: Culicidae) and Culex quinquefasciatus (Say) (Diptera: Culicidae). We believe that the Psorophora eliminated the other competition due to its carnivorous nature and is the reason for the lack of variation of species in the rural population. In regards to population density comparison, our results proved to be inconclusive due to factors unaccounted for. Although, we believe our data regarding population makeup is accurate and the data can be used to analyze the effectiveness of the integrated vector manage of the College Station area nearing the winter months.

Downloads

Published

2017-06-12