Week 6 - New Devices and Techniques!

This week I started placing a new device out with the mosquito trap called the BG-Counter 2 into various resting box sites.  This device is the next generation of mosquito surveillance technology and the first of its kind to enable remote monitoring for mosquitoes. Developing confidence in the technology and ground truthing the remote data is the goal of this study.  For this study we are using a light ring to attract the mosquitoes to the trap.  The BG-Counter 2 counts insects while they are sucked into the trap body by a battery powered fan and is able to differentiate a mosquito from other insects.   Many other insects are attracted to light, and they do get into these traps. Testing the counter’s ability to accurately make these determinations (separating the mosquitoes from other insects) is key to the study. If it works as intended,  this device should make a big difference.  Because we are setting the traps up in remote areas (at our resting box sites for my convenience) without electricity, a 12-volt battery is required to power the counter and make connection to the internet for several days at a time. Carrying these devices, and batteries (which are not light), into the field during this  95-degree heat wave has been challenging! 

My mentor, Scott Crans, took me to a woodland pool (a depression in the woods holding water following a recent rain event) to look for a rare mosquito species the state is collecting for county reference collections. We were after the larva that develops very quickly in the water by using a technique called dipping. I dipped a pole with a cup at the end of it into the pond to collect the specimens. There are different ways to dip to collect larvae from different habitats.  It was really interesting to learn why you use the different dipping techniques. I actually came home and watched some training video on YouTube to understand more.  I had no idea there were so many different approaches to collecting larvae from a pool of water!