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Blog #7: The final week (and what a week it was)

I happened to be concluding my internship experience just as things started to get busy. First, let me backtrack a little bit and provide you all with a refresher. There is a direct purpose to going into the field and collecting samples in a variety of fashions from throughout the state. We send pools of these samples to a lab to be tested for West-Nile Virus (WNV), Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE), Zika, and other vector borne diseases.  Well, as I arrived on the Monday of my last week, I learned that we had numerous positive pools of both WNV and EEE. WNV is of less concern than EEE, although both are very concerning and harmful. We had positive EEE pools in three different sites. Additionally, there was a positive human case of EEE.  One of the sites is of particular worry because its near a densely populated area of Vermont. As such, the department must spring into action. The people above me were thinking of executing some sort of adult mosquito treatment in the area (I am not su
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Blog #6: Pictures throughout the summer!

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 On this blog post I will post the collection of pictures I have from throughout my internship! There will be a combination of photos from the field and lab. Enjoy! Here is a picture of me doing tick drags early in the summer. We wore white suits to catch any ticks that might've hopped on to us.  Office shot! A beautiful field of (I think) Ostrich Ferns.  A cool little Leopard frog I saw in the field! The green highlights are amazing.  A real pretty wood frog from the field! Take a look at this Tiger Swallowtail butterfly. Fanning out its wings just for this picture! A cute little salamander found while tick dragging! From the lab, this is something called a 'Pseudoscorpion'. Kinda looks like a scorpion, hence the name.  I thought this was a beautiful shot in Norwich Vermont. This was taken in Groton State Forest, which is the second largest plot of land managed by the state of Vermont.  I found this landscape to be gorgeous. Pictured in Victory Vermont, this was perhaps t
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Blog Post #5: An Interesting Find

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  In this image above you will see two mosquitos. On the left, is a regular old Culiseta melanura. The mosquito on the right is one of the largest known mosquito species found in Northeastern America. It's scientific name is  Psorophora ciliata , and this species is more commonly known by its' unofficial name: the "Gallinipper". The Gallinipper is a rather menacing looking insect, especially considering its size in comparison to a normal mosquito. That thing is a monster!! I want to make this abundantly clear, the mosquito on the left is an average sized mosquito (for size reference). Imagine the mosquito on the right biting you. I mean look at the proboscis on that thing! What makes this find unique is trapping Gallinippers is a rare occurrence. In fact, this was the first one ever trapped by the Vermont State Agency of Agriculture. They are rarely found in the traps we use-- gravid traps, CDC traps, or resting boxes (for more info on traps, checkout some of my other
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Blog Post #4: New Insights

 Much of my internship experience this summer has been devoted to time in the lab, looking at a microscope, and identifying mosquitoes. As I've spent more time behind the scope, I have come to realize there are life lessons to be gleaned from mosquito identification, and scientific work as a whole.  First, allow me to paint a picture for you of what sitting down and identifying mosquitoes actually looks like. I arrive to the lab in the morning, toting my coffee in one hand and my lunch in the other. I sit down at my stereoscope, twist on the illuminator, and flip the switch to turn on my cold plate. The cold plate allows for samples that I am looking at to stay cold and well preserved. Then, I venture over to the freezer (which is kept at a whopping -82 degrees F). I gather the samples I'll be working on throughout the day, and set them on the table next to my scope. These samples are kept on dry ice, so they stay frozen for the whole day even outside of the freezer. I take a c
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Recap Blog of Weeks 2, 3 & 4

 Hello everyone!  Long time no see! I haven't posted a blog in a few weeks, so I will be recapping the major highlights of the second, third, and fourth weeks of my internship experience. I have settled into a nice routine, and I spend much of my time visiting various different sites in the field. Twice a week I visit regular mosquito collection sites for the Cs. melanura study. One of the sites, I mentioned in my previous blog post, is in the northeast part of Vermont and is almost in Canada. The second site is in central Vermont, in and around Middlebury. So, two out five days each week are devoted to collection from these specific sites.  In mid-June we wrapped up our tick dragging efforts until the beginning of the fall. The last tick site I visited was perhaps one of the most pristine and remote areas I have visited yet. We drove on dirt roads for nearly 40 minutes deep into central Vermont. Once we arrived, I was taken aback by the sheer beauty of this place. Nestled in the v
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Week 1 Recap

 Hello again everyone,  This blog post is a little bit late as I have already finished my second week, but I'll still recap my first week! Week 1 was highlighted by lots of field work. I visited the lab briefly on Monday morning to pick up various supplies like my tick suit, Zooka, and sampling materials. Then, I headed out into the field and participated in my first ever tick drag. Tick dragging is the process of dragging a white piece of cloth over the top of grass, leaf litter, and fallen debris. We then collect the ticks that attach to the cloth (or ourselves), and these samples will be tested for any diseases. When tick dragging I don a white jumpsuit so I may easily identify ticks that may have attached to me.  On Tuesday, I headed out into the field again. This time I ventured north, up to the Champlain Islands of northeastern Vermont. This is my personal favorite part of Vermont, as it has incredible views of the mountains standing stoic above the lake. I followed a route t
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Introduction Blog Post (6/2/2024)

 Hello everyone! Welcome to my summer blog where I will be documenting my summer internship experience at the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food, and Markets, Environmental Surveillance Division. I am entering my senior year at the University of Vermont, and I'm majoring in Wildlife and Fisheries Biology.  My first day is tomorrow, June 3rd, and I am very excited. I will be doing a variety of things, such as tick and mosquito collection from a multitude of sites throughout the entire state of Vermont. In the lab, I will spend time identifying these samples, rearing larvae for the lab's collection, and collaborating with the CDC in collecting Culiseta melanura blood meal samples. Additionally, I will work on a data analysis project throughout my internship period. Last summer I worked for a small mosquito control district doing similar work to the work I will be doing this coming summer. I enjoyed the work I did last year, especially time spent in the field. I am excited to fur
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