Effects of landscape composition on mosquito population in urban green spaces

Abstract

Despite the fact that urban green spaces provide multiple benefits to urban residents, they have some negative effects on people, such as mosquito bites which not only cause major nuisance and debase visitors’ experiences, but also transmit infectious diseases, discouraging people access to urban green spaces. In order to find the effects of landscape composition on mosquito population and provide practical methods of design to control mosquitoes, ten sample sites of urban green spaces in Xuzhou, eastern China were selected and their mosquito densities were measured using the light traps during the evening in summer 2019. And, the satellite image with a radius of 300 m centered by the light trap on each site was used to quantify the landscape composition of the ten sites studied. The results indicate that (1) more aquatic plants can predicate a higher mosquito density, and more water implies an environment with more mosquitoes; (2) in general, the higher the wood plant coverage is, the fewer mosquitoes are. These results provide valuable guidance and reference for anti-mosquito landscape design and management.