Mosquito and Plant Research Group
As
South Australia’s only provider of mosquito-borne disease consulting
services, UniSA’s Mosquito and Plant Research Group aims to improve the
health of people and places by applying specialist knowledge of mosquitoes
and other insects to various ecological contexts.
Established by Dr Michael Kokkinn in the early ’90, the group works closely with government, industry, and interstate university laboratories to provide expert advice on important issues to managing mosquitoes and the diseases they spread.
Its research focus extends from the local to the global, from predicting and preventing Ross River Virus in South Australia, to studying the nature of tropical diseases such as Dengue Fever.
As well as its work into mosquitoes and disease, the group is also involved in a variety of other biology research.
Dr Michael Kokkinn – group director
Dr Craig Williams – head of mosquito research
Research staff:
Stephen Fricker
Katherine Leach
Samantha Williams
Postgraduate students:
Susan Little
Melanie Schneemilch
- XYZ Networks/The Weather Channel
- SA Department of Health
- Various local governments, including Renmark-Paringa, Loxton-Waikerie, Berri-Barmera, Mid-Murray, Murray Bridge, Coorong, Ceduna, Salisbury.
- James Cook University
- University of Melbourne
- Adelaide and Mt Lofty Natural Resources Management Board
Some of the Mosquito and Plant Research Group’s current and recent projects include:
Development of predictive models of mosquito
nuisance and arbovirus transmission
Researchers: Craig Williams, Stephen Fricker,
Samantha Williams, Michael Kokkinn, Melanie Schneemilch
Client: SA Department of Health
Researchers are developing new software that takes into
account historical and current data to help health officers predict the
likelihood of disease outbreaks such as Ross River Virus.
Mosquito surveillance, River Murray SA
Researchers: Stephen Fricker, Craig Williams,
Michael Kokkinn
Clients: Local governments along the river, SA
Department of Health
As part of this ongoing project, UniSA researchers are
working closely with local government to observe and control mosquito
populations along the River Murray in South Australia.
Adelaide pollen count
Researchers involved: Craig Williams, Samantha
Williams, Melanie Schneemilch, Katherine Leach
Client: The Weather Channel
Research staff use spore-counting techniques to provide
a daily pollen count for Adelaide for Foxtel’s Weather Channel.
CR Williams, SR Fricker, MJ Kokkinn, JD Wakefield 2007. RR Forecaster: tools for predicting mosquito and arbovirus activity Version 1.1 (with CD-ROM). University of South Australia and South Australian Department of Health, Adelaide. ISBN 192 092 7549
CR Williams, SR Fricker, M Schneemilch, E Wishart, K Brown, M Humphrey, J Riordan, J Azuolas 2007. An investigation of mosquito communities in northern South Australia after a significant rainfall event. Public Health Bulletin South Australia 4: 29-33
CR Williams. SR Fricker, MJ Kokkinn 2007. Northern exposure in South Australia: chasing mosquitoes in arid areas. Mosquito Bites in the Asia Pacific Region 2: 5-8
Williams, C.R., Long, S.A, Webb, C.E., Bitzhenner, M., Geier M., Russell, R.C. & Ritchie, S.A. (2007). Aedes aegypti population sampling using BG-Sentinel traps in north Queensland Australia: statistical considerations for trap deployment and sampling strategy. Journal of Medical Entomology (in press).
Williams, C.R., Ritchie, S.A., Long, S.A, Dennison, N., & Russell, R.C. (2007). Impact of a bifenthrin-treated lethal ovitrap on Aedes aegypti oviposition and mortality in North Queensland, Australia. Journal of Medical Entomology (in press).
Williams, C.R., Bergbauer, R., Geier, M., Kline, D.L., Bernier, U.R., Russell, R.C. & Ritchie, S.A. (2006). Laboratory and field assessment of kairomone blends for host-seeking Aedes aegypti. Journal of the American Mosquito Control Association 22, 641-647.
Williams, C.R., Long, S.A, Russell, R.C. & Ritchie, S.A. (2006). Optimizing ovitrap use for Aedes aegypti in Cairns, Queensland, Australia: effects of some abiotic factors on field efficacy. Journal of the American Mosquito Control Association 22, 635-640.
Cook, P.E., Hugo, L.E., Iturbe-Ormaetxe, I., Williams, C.R., Ritchie, S.A., Chenoweth, S.F., Ryan, P.A., Kay, B.H., Blows, M.W. & O'Neill, S.L. (2006). The use of transcriptional profiles to predict mosquito adult age under field conditions. PNAS 103, 18060-18065.
Ritchie, S.A., Moore, P., Carruthers, M., Williams, C., Montgomery, B., Foley, P., Ahboo, S., van den Hurk, A. F., Lindsay, M. D., Cooper, R., Beebe, N. & Russell, R. C. (2006). Discovery of a widespread infestation of Aedes albopictus in the Torres Strait, Australia. Journal of the American Mosquito Control Association 22, 358-365.
Williams, C.R., Long, S.A, Russell, R.C. & Ritchie, S.A. (2006). Field efficacy of the BG-Sentinel compared with CDC backpack aspirators and CO2-baited EVS traps for collection of adult Aedes aegypti in Cairns, Queensland, Australia. Journal of the American Mosquito Control Association 22, 296-300.
Williams, C.R., Ritchie, S.A., Russell, R.C., Eiras, A.E. & Geier, M. (2006) Geographic variation in attraction to human odor compounds by Aedes aegypti mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae): a laboratory study. Journal of Chemical Ecology 32, 1625-1634.
Ritchie, S.A., Williams, C.R. & Montgomery, B.L. (2006) Field evaluation of New Mountain Sandalwood Mosquito Sticks and New Mountain Sandalwood Botanical Repellent against mosquitoes in North Queensland, Australia. Journal of the American Mosquito Control Association 22, 158-160.
Williams, C.R., Smith, B.P.C., Best, S.M., & Tyler, M.J. (2006). Mosquito repellents in frog skin. Biology Letters 2, 242 - 245.
Nicholson, J, Mirtschin P, Madaras F, Venning M, Kokkinn M (2006). Digestive properties of the venom of the Australian Coastal Taipan, Oxyuranus scutellatus (Peters, 1867) Toxicon 48: 422-428.
Russell, R.C., Williams, C.R. Sutherst, R.W. & Ritchie, S.A. (2005) Aedes (Stegomyia) albopictus - a dengue threat for southern Australia? Communicable Disease Intelligence 29: 296-298.
Russell, R.C., Webb, C.E., Williams, C.R. & Ritchie, S.A. (2005) Mark-release-recapture to study dispersal of Aedes aegypti (L.), in Cairns, Queensland, Australia. Medical and Veterinary Entomology 19, 451-457.
Williams, C.R., Ritchie, S.A. & Whelan, P.I. (2005) Potential distribution of the Asian disease vector Culex gelidus Theobald (Diptera: Culicidae) in Australia and New Zealand: a prediction based on climate suitability. Australian Journal of Entomology 44: 425-430.
Williams, C.R., Ritchie, S.A., Russell, R.C. & Zborowski, P. (2005) Development and application of ‘lure and kill’ strategies for the dengue vector Aedes aegypti in Australia. Arbovirus Research in Australia 9, 397-402.
Williams, C.R. & Kokkinn, M.J. (2005) Daily patterns of locomotor and sugar-feeding activity of the mosquito Culex annulirostris from geographically isolated populations. Physiological Entomology 30, 309-316.
Williams, C.R. (2005) The timing of host-seeking behaviour of the mosquitoes Anopheles annulipes sensu lato Walker and Coquillettidia linealis (Skuse) (Diptera: Culicidae) in the Murray River Valley, South Australia. Australian Journal of Entomology 44, 110-112.