Somerton residents sought for mosquito study
Somerton residents are being recruited to allow mosquito traps on their property in a study aimed at preventing the breeding of the species that carries Zika and other diseases.
The study by the University of Arizona and the Yuma County Pest Abatement District will determine the effectiveness of a trap in a desert environment in controlling the spread of the Aedes aegypti mosquito. Besides Zika, the mosquito can carry the Dengue, Yellow fever and Chikungunya viruses.
A research team wants to place and maintain the traps on the volunteers’ property for six weeks beginning next month and again for the same duration in the first half of 2018.
Each trap consists of a black plastic bucket measuring about two feet in height and about 1-1/2 feet in diameter at the base, says Elene Stefanakos, manager of the pest abatement district.
The traps do not contain pesticides nor run on electricity, she says. Instead their color serves as a “visual cue” to attract and capture pregnant females of the Aedes variety.
The traps have already proved effective in catching mosquitoes, Stefanakos said, so the question to be answered in the study is how many of them are needed in a given area to control the insect.
Study participants will be asked to allow as few as two or up to 10 of the traps to be placed outside on their property, she said.
The study is restricted to the Somerton area, so researchers are seeking only volunteers living inside or just outside the city limits.
“We picked Somerton because it’s within our district,” Stefanakos said. “We know that there is a population (of Aedes aegypti) there, so we know we can do the study. And the residents are always willing to participate.”
Once a mosquito is drawn into the black bucket, it becomes trapped in a net. The research team in the study will visit the traps weekly to replace the nets and refill the water at the bottom of the buckets.
Team members who will take part in the study are Teresa Reyes, Lans Bickford and Ban Saber.
Stefanakos said the traps are scheduled to be set up on study participants’ property in September and removed by mid-November. Participants will be asked to make their property available for a second round of study in the spring.
While the Aedes aegypti mosquito is found in the area, there so far are no documented local cases of it transmitting Zika, Dengue, Yellow fever or Chikungunya to humans, according to the Yuma County Health Department.
Disease or not, the goal of the study is to prevent breeding of the mosquito, Stefanakos says. “It’s still going bite you. It’s nothing you want around.”
Somerton residents wishing to participate in the study should call (928) 726-1030.