Open AccessUrban farms in Miami-Dade county, Florida have favorable environments for vector mosquitoes
Author(s) -
André Barretto Bruno Wilke,
Augusto Carvajal,
Chalmers Vasquez,
William D. Petrie,
John C. Beier
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
plos one
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.99
H-Index - 332
ISSN - 1932-6203
DOI - 10.1371/journal.pone.0230825
Subject(s) - vector (molecular biology) , miami , habitat , urban ecology , geography , mosquito control , range (aeronautics) , ecology , veterinary medicine , biology , environmental protection , environmental science , medicine , biochemistry , materials science , malaria , gene , soil science , immunology , composite material , recombinant dna
The creation of urban farms in complex urban built environments may create suitable local conditions for vector mosquitoes. Urban farms have been implicated in the proliferation of mosquitoes in Africa, but there is a dearth in the knowledge of their role in the proliferation of mosquitoes elsewhere. In this study, we surveyed two urban farms in Miami-Dade County, Florida. Our results show that urban farms provide favorable conditions for populations of vector mosquito species by providing a wide range of essential resources such as larval habitats, suitable outdoor resting sites, sugar-feeding centers, and available hosts for blood-feeding. A total of 2,185 specimens comprising 12 species of mosquitoes were collected over 7 weeks. The results varied greatly according to the urban farm. At the Wynwood urban farm, 1,016 specimens were collected but were distributed only between 3 species; while the total number of specimens collected at the Golden Glades urban farm was 1,168 specimens comprising 12 species. The presence of vector mosquitoes in urban farms may represent a new challenge for the development of effective strategies to control populations of vector mosquito species in urban areas.