Lyme disease is one of the most common and impactful tickborne illnesses in the United States. Even so, there is a low number of reported Lyme disease cases in the Gulf South region (US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2025a). Cases are concentrated in
Alpha-gal syndrome, or the red meat allergy, is gaining attention in popular media but it still may not be well understood. This is a tick-transmitted allergy to mammalian products, specifically to the carbohydrate galactose-𝛼-1,3-galactose (𝛼-gal). The sugar 𝛼-gal is not in humans but is in
Olivia Magaletta successfully completed her master’s degree in Entomology at the University of Florida – Florida Medical Entomology Laboratory, a center part of the Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences.
Jacquez Daniels received his B.S. in Entomology and recently completed his M.S. in Entomology at Florida A&M University (FAMU), where he now serves as a research assistant.
Logan Gary is completing his Bachelor of Science in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at Loyola University. Upon graduation, he plans to attend LSU’s School of Veterinary Medicine. Logan has recently begun contributing to the Gulf South VECTOR Animal Welfare Committee.
Welcoming new Gulf South VECTOR collaborator Citrus County Mosquito Control District, this spotlight highlights how one of Florida’s long-standing mosquito control programs uses integrated mosquito management, disease surveillance, aerial larviciding, insecticide resistance testing, public outreach, and innovative biological control strategies to protect public health and
Aedes (Fredwardsius) vittatus (Bigot, 1861) is a mosquito species native to tropical regions of Africa, Asia, and the western Mediterranean. Learn what to do if you spot this species in the Gulf South region.
Bella Termini is currently completing her M.S. in Tropical Medicine at the Tulane University Celia Scott Weatherhead School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, where she works in the lab of Dr. Dawn Wesson.
Dr. Susanne Straif‑Bourgeois brings more than 30 years of experience in infectious disease epidemiology, working across multiple countries and public health settings. Her academic training and early research centered on vector‑borne diseases, with master’s and doctoral work examining disease transmission pathways in blood‑feeding arthropods and
Forest habitats are rarely part of the typical mosquito surveillance stops in the south, given how many medically important species exists in open water habitats and containers in suburban and urban spaces. However, in those deciduous forests often lingers an important and often overlooked species,