Source: OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY submitted to NRP
ALIGNING INVESTMENTS IN GREENING AND MOSQUITO MANAGEMENT TO SUPPORT BEE AND HUMAN HEALTH IN CITIES
Sponsoring Institution
National Institute of Food and Agriculture
Project Status
ACTIVE
Funding Source
AFRI COMPETITIVE GRANT
Reporting Frequency
Annual
Accession No.
1030182
Grant No.
2023-67013-39915
Cumulative Award Amt.
$749,991.00
Proposal No.
2022-08482
Multistate No.
(N/A)
Project Start Date
May 1, 2023
Project End Date
Apr 30, 2027
Grant Year
2023
Program Code
[A1113]- Pollinator Health: Research and Application
Recipient Organization
OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY
1680 MADISON AVENUE
WOOSTER,OH 44691
Performing Department
(N/A)
Non Technical Summary
Residential landscapes often offer poor bee habitat due to a lack of forage and nesting sites, and frequent pesticide use. Sustainable landscaping programs aim to increase the nutritional quality of residential land by prescribing management practices such as establishing native wildflowers and avoiding pesticides. Nearly 200 programs exist in the U.S., but their ecological value for bee conservation is poorly understood. Moreover, these programs may unintentionally increase the abundance of disease-vectoring mosquitoesby providing pesticide-free nectar and harborage sites. In contrast, municipal and homeowner investments to control mosquitoes with pesticides are likely detrimental to pollinators. This proposal works from the hypothesis that current greening initiatives and mosquito control efforts are misaligned such that efforts to support pollinatorsunintentionallyincrease mosquito-borne disease risk,while municipal programs to support public health negatively impact pollinators. We test this hypothesis by first evaluating whether an increased concentration of greening within a landscape positively influences wild bee health, mosquito abundance and West Nile virus prevalence (Obj. 1). Next, we will evaluate the impact of vector management programs by municipal health departments and commercial applicators on bee health and mosquito abundance (Obj 2). Finally, we will measure the efficacy of mosquito-specific traps to reduce mosquitoes without harming pollinators and assess the likelihood that homeowners will adopt this tactic (Obj. 3). By working with adiverse stakeholder team, wewill disseminate our findings throughExtension activities and thereby help to align efforts tosupport pollinator and protect human health.
Animal Health Component
100%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
(N/A)
Applied
100%
Developmental
(N/A)
Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)Subject of Investigation (SOI)Field of Science (FOS)Percent
13652201130100%
Knowledge Area
136 - Conservation of Biological Diversity;

Subject Of Investigation
5220 - Pesticides;

Field Of Science
1130 - Entomology and acarology;
Goals / Objectives
Objective 1: Determine if the concentration of greening within a residential landscape influences bee health, mosquito abundance, and vector-borne disease risk within residential landscapes.H1: An increased concentration of residential greening will benefit bee health, but increase the abundance of mosquitoes and prevalence of West Nile virus within an urban landscape.Objective. 2: Measure the target and non-target effects of mosquito adulticide applications as well as the consequences of opting out of these tactics for bee health and mosquito abundance.H2: Mosquito adulticides will reduce the local abundance of their targets relative to sites that opt out of pesticides applications, but negatively impact the health of wild bee species.Objective 3: Evaluate whether a mosquito trapping program can provide effective mosquito management while supporting pollinator health.H3: Deploying mosquito-specific traps will be as effective a control as broad spectrum adulticide applications while aligning local community greening efforts to support pollinators.
Project Methods
Objective 1Study Sites: We have selected 30 residential sites within Franklin County where the household has utilized one or more Community Backyards (CB) rebates to establish a pollinator garden. These sites are embedded within 1.5 km radius landscapes that vary in 1) the total number of CB participants, and 2) the proportion of total greenspace present (defined as contiguous patches that are 30 m2 or greater in size).Mosquito Abundance and WNV Detection: We predict that mosquito abundance will increase as the proportion of CB participants and total greenspace increase within the landscape surrounding our sites. To testthis prediction, we will collect mosquitoes from the 30 residential CB sites once every two weeks during thepeak mosquito and WNV infection season in Ohio. Mosquitoes will be collected using 3 trapping methods: (1) CDC gravid traps that will collect Culex mosquitoes that have consumed a blood meal and are about to lay eggs; (2) BG Sentinel traps that are baited with CO2 and/or human pheromone lures that are attractive to Aedes and nuisance mosquitoes; and (2) CDC light traps baited with CO2 that are attractive to a variety of host-seeking mosquitoes. We predict that greening initiatives within urban areas will increase the prevalence of WNV-infection in mosquitoes and disease risk. To test this prediction, we will determine the frequency of WNV infection within collected mosquitoes.Bee Health: We will measure aspects of bee health for the community of native solitary cavity nesting bees and theeusocial common Eastern bumble bee, Bombus impatiens. For each of these groups, we will examine reproductive success, parasite infection, and overwintering success.Objectives 2 and 3Study Design: Both Obj. 2 and 3 will be addressed using a network of study sites established in 5 communities across Franklin County, Ohio. We will establish 20 sites, and each site will consist of 5 adjacent residences that boarder the same roadway. Sites will be assigned to 4 treatments (n=5 per treatment). We will establish one replicate of each treatment in the communities of Bexley, Gahanna, Hillard, Westerville, and Upper Arlington. Each site will be separated from any other site by >3 km, which will prevent overlap of landscape buffers.T1: FCPH Threshold: Households will follow recommended mosquito management practices. In addition, FCPH will apply an ULV adulticide application using a truck-mounted sprayer to each landscape when mosquito populations exceed an established threshold and/or WNV is detected in the community. Households will be asked not to apply DIY pesticide treatments to control mosquitoes on their property or hire a private company to manage mosquitoes.T2: FCPH Threshold + Barrier Spray: Households will follow recommended mosquito management practices. FCPH will apply an ULV adulticide application using a truck mounted sprayer to each landscape when mosquito populations exceed an established threshold and/or WNV is detected in the community. In addition, a local, licensed commercial applicator will be contracted to apply a barrier spray of deltamethrin (Suspend Polyzone) once every three weeks to each property beginning in mid-June. Four applications will be made per year. Households will be asked not to apply additional DIY pesticide treatments to control mosquitoes.T3: FCPH Opt-Out: Five adjacent households will follow recommended mosquito management practices and be registered as "do not spray" sites with FCPH. These sites will not be treated by FCPH and a buffer of 45 m will be maintained on both roadside edges of the site. Households will be asked not to apply DIY pesticide treatments to control mosquitoes on their property or hire a private company to manage mosquitoes.T4: FCPH Opt-Out + Traps: Five adjacent households will follow recommended mosquito management practices and be registered as "do not spray" sites with FCPH. In addition, OSU researchers will place two BG Gravid Aedes Traps (GATs) and one modified CDC gravid trap on the properties of all residents assigned to Treatment 4. The BG GAT traps collect gravid Aedes mosquitoes by enticing them to fly into the collection chamber where they get trapped to a sticky card. The CDC gravid trap will consist of a black tub containing pungent water with fermented grass clippings that are highly attractive to Culex mosquitoes. To ensure that mosquito larvae do not develop in the water, Spinosad tablets, an EPA-approved larvicide, will be placed within the CDC gravid trap. A solar-powered fan that sucks mosquitoes into a collectionchamber is the final component of the CDC gravid trap. In 2025, OSU researchers will replace the sticky cards within the GATs, empty the mosquitoes from the collection chamber of the CDC gravid traps, monitor and replace water within the traps as necessary, and Spinosad tablets to the CDC gravid traps once every two weeks. During the second year of this study (2026), residents in Treatment 4 will be responsible for maintaining their GATs and CDC gravid traps. They will be instructed to check their traps at least once a week, and to replace the sticky cards within the GATs and Spinosad tablets within the CDC gravid traps at least once every two weeks. These sites will not be treated by FCPH and a buffer of 45 m will be maintained on both roadside edges of the site. Households will be asked not to apply DIY pesticide treatments to control mosquitoes on their property or hire a private company to manage mosquitoes.Establishment of Native Plant Habitat: The homes included in this study may or may not be current CB participants and the number and species composition of flowering plants established in their landscapes will vary. To mimic CB participation and provide some consistency in the native plant community present across all sites we will provide each household with four 1-gallon Ohio native perennial plants that are highly attractive to wild bees and vary in bloom period across the timeframe of the study. This will mimic the plant community a resident could purchase in a single year using a $50 CB rebate.Mosquito Collection: We will measure mosquito abundance in all sites once every two weeks. Mosquitoes will be collected using sentinel traps (CDC light and BG sentinel traps) in the front yard of the central home (House 3, Figure 8) as described in Obj. 1. Upon collecting mosquitoes from the field, they will be identified to species in the Meuti Lab. Culex mosquitoes from each replicate will be pooled (n < 50 females) and tested for WNV infection as described in Obj. 1.Bee Health:We will measure aspects of bee health for the community of native solitary cavity nesting bees and theeusocial common Eastern bumble bee,Bombus impatiens. For each of these groups, we will examine reproductive success, parasite infection, and overwintering success.

Progress 05/01/23 to 04/30/24

Outputs
Target Audience:Scientific researchers, pest control companies, Franklin County Soil and Water District, Franklin County Public Health, residents of Frankin County Ohio. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Two graduate students attended the 2024 Entomological Society of America Annual Meeting in Phoenix, Arizona. One graduate student attended the 2024 North Central Branch Entomological Society of America Annual Meeting in Fort Collins, Colorado? How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Presentations at Scientific Conferences Shepard, C; Dehus, H; Meuti, M; Gardiner, MM. Do municipal investments in backyard greening improve bumble bee health in residential landscapes?Grad 10-min Competition: P-IE, Conservation, Entomological Society of America Annual Meeting, Phoenix, AZ, (oral presentation). 13 November 2024 Dehus, H., Sheperd, C., Ward, S., Gardiner, M.M., Meuti, M.E. "Efforts to support pollinators may unintentionally increase mosquito-borne disease risk". Presented at the 2024 Ohio Valley Entomological Association Meeting. 11 October 2024. Narayanan, D.,Dehus, H., Danford, E., Pham, M., Meuti, M.E., Gardiner, M.M. "Does mosquito management harm beneficial insects in residential landscapes?". Presented at the 2024 Entomological Society of America North Central Branch Meeting. 24 March 2024. Dehus, H.,Narayanan, D., Gardiner, M.M., Meuti, M.E. "Evaluating the Impact of Traditional and Alternative Mosquito Control Strategies on the Environment and Public Health". Presented at the 2024 American Mosquito Control Association Annual Meeting. 5 March 2024. Presentations at Extension Meetings Tolle, C.,Dehus, H.,Sheperd, C., Ward, S., Gardiner, M.M., Meuti, M.E. Investigating the conflict between pollinator conservation and mosquito control". Presented at the 2025 Indiana Vector Control Association Annual Meeting. 17 March 2025. Dehus, H., Sheperd, C., Ward, S., Gardiner, M.M., Meuti, M.E.Are efforts to conserve urban bees unintentionally increasing the risk of mosquito-borne disease?". Presented at the 2025 American Mosquito Control Association Annual Meeting. 7 March 2025. Shepard, C; Gardiner MM. Native Plants Favored in Their Landscaping and How Attractive are These Choices for Bees?Short Course: Pollinator Track,2024 Ohio Turfgrass Foundation Conference + Show, Columbus, OH, (1 hour oral presentation). 6 December 2024 What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?In our next reporting period we will be completing the following tasks: Data will be collected to support objectives 2 and 3 over the summer of 2025 (June-October). Note, a second year of data collection for objectives 2 and 3 will be conducted in summer of 2026 (June-October). Data processing will occur from fall 2025 through early spring of 2026. A publication currently in draft will be submitted for publication in a peer-reviewed based on the findings of a preliminary study that was included in our grant proposal. A publication based on the mosquito findings in Objective 1 will be submitted for publication in a peer-reviewed journal. A publication based on the bumble bee health findings in Objective 1 will be submitted for publication in a peer-reviewed journal. A publication based on residential native plant species preferences for home gardens and their relative attractiveness to pollinators using data collected in Objective 1 will be submitted for publication in a peer-reviewed journal. We will develop an Ohio State University Fact Sheet that illustrates how to eliminate mosquito breeding habitat from home landscapes. We will develop an Ohio State University Booklet that focuses on identifying and supporting Ohio's urban wild bees.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Objective 1:Determine if the concentration of greening within a residential landscape influences bee health, mosquito abundance, and vector-borne disease risk within residential landscapes. H1:An increased concentration of residential greening will benefit bee health, but increase theabundance of mosquitoes and prevalence of West Nile virus within an urban landscape. Status Obj. 1:All data has been collected for this objective. All samples from 2023 have been processed and we are nearly complete processing samples from 2024.Preliminary data analysis has been conducted for 2023. Objective. 2:Measure the target and non-target effects of mosquito adulticide applications as well as the consequences of opting out of these tactics for bee health and mosquito abundance. H2:Mosquito adulticides will reduce the local abundance of their targets relative to sites thatopt out of pesticides applications, but negatively impact the health of wild bee species. Objective 3:Evaluate whether a mosquito trapping program can provide effective mosquito management while supporting pollinator health. H3:Deploying mosquito-specific traps will be as effective a control as broad spectrum adulticide applications while aligning local community greening efforts to support pollinators. Status Obj. 2 and 3:We worked with community leaders across Franklin County to establish a network of 20 field sites. Each site consists of three adjacent households. We have finalized all sampling protocols and data collection will begin in summer 2025.

Publications