Background: Entomological monitoring of Aedes vectors has largely relied on surveillance of larvae, pupae and non-host-seeking adults, which have been poorly correlated with human disease incidence. Exposure to mosquitoborne diseases can be more directly estimated using human landing catches (HLC), although this method is not recommended for Aedes-borne arboviruses. We evaluated a new method previously tested with malaria vectors, the mosquito electrocuting trap (MET) as an exposure-free alternative for measuring landing rates of Aedes mosquitoes on people. Aims were to (i) compare the MET to the BG-sentinel (BGS) trap gold standard approach for sampling hostseeking Aedes vectors; and (ii) characterize the diel activity of Aedes vectors and their association with microclimatic conditions. Methods: The study was conducted over 12 days in Quinindé (Ecuador) in May 2017. Mosquito sampling stations were set up in the peridomestic area of four houses. On each day of sampling, each house was allocated either a MET or a BGS trap, which were rotated amongst the four houses daily in a Latin square design. Mosquito abundance and microclimatic conditions were recorded hourly at each sampling station between 7:00-19:00 h to assess variation between vector abundance, trapping methods, and environmental conditions. All Aedes aegypti females were tested for the presence of Zika (ZIKV), dengue (DENV) and chikungunya (CHIKV) viruses. Results: A higher number of Ae. aegypti females were found in MET than in BGS collections, although no statistically significant differences in mean Ae. aegypti abundance between trapping methods were found. Both trapping methods indicated female Ae. aegypti had bimodal patterns of host-seeking, being highest during early morning and late afternoon hours. Mean Ae. aegypti daily abundance was negatively associated with daily temperature. No infection by ZIKV, DENV or CHIKV was detected in any Aedes mosquitoes caught by either trapping method. Conclusion: We conclude the MET performs at least as well as the BGS standard and offers the additional advantage of direct measurement of per capita human-biting rates. If detection of arboviruses can be confirmed in MET-collected Aedes in future studies, this surveillance method could provide a valuable tool for surveillance and prediction on human arboviral exposure risk.

BackgroundEntomological monitoring of Aedes vectors has largely relied on surveillance of larvae, pupae and non-host-seeking adults, which have been poorly correlated with human disease incidence. Exposure to mosquito-borne diseases can be more directly estimated using Human Landing Catches (HLC), although this method is not recommended for Aedes-borne arboviruses.We evaluated a new method previously tested with malaria vectors, the Mosquito Electrocuting Trap (MET) as an exposure-free alternative for measuring landing rates of Aedes mosquitoes on people. Aims were to 1) compare the MET to the BG-sentinel (BGS) trap gold standard approach for sampling host-seeking Aedes vectors; 2) characterize the diel activity of Aedes vectors and their association with microclimatic conditions. MethodsThe study was conducted over 12 days in Quinindé -Ecuador in May 2017. Mosquito sampling stations were set up in the peridomestic area of four houses. On each day of sampling, each house was allocated either a MET or a BGS trap, which were rotated amongst the four houses daily in a Latin square design. Mosquito abundance and microclimatic conditions were recorded hourly at each sampling station between 07:00-19:00 hours to assess variation between vector abundance, trapping methods, and environmental conditions. All Aedes aegypti females were tested for the presence of Zika (ZIKV), dengue (DENV) and chikungunya (CHIKV) viruses.3 ResultsA higher number of Ae. aegypti females were found in MET than in BGS collections, although no statistically significant differences in mean Ae. aegypti abundance between trapping methods were found. Both trapping methods indicated female Ae. aegypti had bimodal patterns of host seeking, being highest during early morning and late afternoon hours. Mean Ae. aegypti daily abundance was negatively associated with daily temperature. No infection by ZIKV, DENV or CHIKV was detected in any Aedes mosquitoes caught by either trapping method. ConclusionWe conclude the MET performs at least as well as the BGS standard, and offers the additional advantage of direct measurement of per capita human biting rates. If detection of arboviruses can be confirmed in MET-collected Aedes in future studies, this surveillance method could provide a valuable tool for surveillance and prediction on human arboviral exposure risk. BACKGROUNDMosquito--borne viruses (arboviruses) are an important cause of diseases in humans and animals. In 2017, estimates suggested that mosquitoes were responsible for approximately 137 millions human arboviral infections with dengue (DENV), chikungunya (CHIKV), and Zika virus (ZIKV) being the most important [1]. Arbovirus transmission to humans depends on multiple factors that involve spatial movement and immunity of human populations [2-7], socioeconomic factors and access to basic services (especially water) [8][9][10][11], and the ecology and distribution of the mosquito vectors that transmit them [12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19]. These factors combine to determine the distribution and intens...

We compiled and presented a dataset for all timber species reported in the Amazon region from all nine South American Amazonian countries. This was based on official information from every country, as well as from two substantial scientific references. We verified the standard taxonomic names from each individual source, using the Taxonomic Name Resolution Service (TNRS) and considered all Amazonian tree species with diameter at breast height (DBH) ≥10 cm. We also obtained estimates of the current population size for most species from a published approach based on data from 1900 tree inventory plots (1‐ha each) distributed across the Amazon region and part from the Amazon Tree Diversity Network (ATDN). We then identified the hyperdominant timber species. In addition, we overlapped our timber species list with data for species that are used for commercial purposes, according to the International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO), the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) taxa assessment and Red List categories. Finally, we also included IUCN Red List categories based on combined deforestation, and climate change scenarios for these species. Our final Amazonian timber species dataset contains 1112 unique species records, which belong to 337 genera and 72 families from the lowland Amazonian rainforest, with associated information related to population, conservation, and trade status of each species. The authors of this research expect that the information provided will be useful to strengthen the public forestry policies of the Amazon countries, inform ecological studies, as well for forest management purposes. The data are released under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license.

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