Colloquium - Modelling Allee Effects in a transgenic mosquito population during range expansion

Dates

Tuesday, June 14, 2022 - 14:00 to 15:00

Speaker:   Victoria Brown (The Open University)

Abstract: In this talk I will discuss modelling work undertaken with colleagues at Virginia Tech and Williams College that looks at potential allee effects in a transgenic mosquito population. Mosquitoes are vectors for a huge variety of diseases and controlling mosquito populations at a local level is a strategy that has been used for many years. Recent technology advances have made it possible to genetically modify mosquitoes to decrease their fitness, and this had been investigated as a possible control strategy for mosquito populations. Our work looks to determine the effects of releasing transgenic mosquitoes into areas which currently have small mosquito populations to assesses the impact these transgenic population could have on the overall mosquito population levels in a given area.