This USGS data release consists of seven data sets and accompanying metadata for studies on the efficacy of adult mosquito traps and lures for monitoring populations of the invasive mosquito Culex quinquefasciatus and the efficacy of the biopesticide VectoMax FG for control of larval Culex quinquefasciatus in Hawaiian forest bird habitat. Culex quinquefasciatus is the vector of the avian malaria Plasmodium relictum a key limiting factor of forest birds. The main components of the study included: 1) the evaluation of trap designs and lures for adult mosquitoes in forested habitat and the prevalence of malaria in those mosquitoes (Hawaii Island 2 data files), 2) Kawaikoi Stream surveys for larval mosquitoes and suitable larval habitat (Alakai Plateau, Kauai), 3) Larval mosquito control efficacy trials with the biopesticide VectoMax FG (Alakai Plateau, Kauai), 4) adult mosquito monitoring in the Kawaikoi Stream drainage study site and malaria prevalence determination (Alakai Plateau Kauai 2 data files). An additional data file contains geographical coordinates for key localities in the study. The study was conducted by The US Geological Survey, Pacific Island Ecosystems Research Center personnel in collaboration wth biologists with the Kauai Forest Bird Recovery Project. Studies were conducted in native forests on Kauai and Hawaii islands during 2016 and 2017.

As part of a larger study on the efficacy of the biopesticide VectoMax FG for control of larval Culex quinquefasciatus and adult mosquito traps for monitoring, USGS personnel evaluated host-seeking trap configurations and attractants as well as infusions for gravid trap for capturing adult mosquitoes (Culex quinquefasciatus and Aedes japonicus) in native forest habitat from August to November 2017. Four trap sites were selected in a forest tract in Volcano Village. Traps were arranged in a 100-meter square and trap types and lures were rotated through each site during each week of the study in a latin square design. Both host-seeking traps (Biogents Sentinel Traps and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) miniature light traps) and CDC Gravid Traps were operated nightly at each site from 1600 to 0700 hr the following morning.

As part of a larger study on the efficacy of the biopesticide VectoMax FG for control of larval Culex quinquefasciatus and adult mosquito traps for monitoring, USGS personnel evaluated host-seeking trap configurations and attractants as well as infusions for gravid trap for capturing adult mosquitoes (Culex quinquefasciatus and Aedes japonicus) in native forest habitat from August to November 2017. Four trap sites were selected in a forest tract in Volcano Village. Traps were arranged in a 100-meter square and trap types and lures were rotated through each site during each week of the study in a latin square design. Both host-seeking traps (Biogents Sentinel Traps and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) miniature light traps) and CDC Gravid Traps were operated nightly at each site from 1600 to 0700 hr the following morning.

As part of a larger study looking at the efficacy of the biopesticide VectoMax FG for control of larval Culex quinquefasciatus, USGS and DOFAW personnel monitored adult mosquitoes (Culex quinquefasciatus and Aedes japonicus) along the Kawaikoi Stream during late summer, September through November 2016 and 2017. Ten trap sites were selected across a 1-kilometer grid centered on the intersection of the Alakai Swamp Trail and Kawaikoi Stream, Alakai Wilderness Preserve, Kauai. Traps were located at least 200 meters apart at accessible sites along the stream, valley floor, and adjacent plateau. Both Biogents Sentinel Traps (BGS) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Gravid Traps (GRV) were operated nightly at each site from 1600 to 0700 hr the following morning. Depending on the weather (heavy rains and high water) and trap reliability (battery and CO2 delivery failures) the number of traps operated per night varied considerably. The data was used to compare the weekly relative abundance of mosquitoes (mosquitoes/trap-night) across the trapping season and following VectoMax FG application.

As part of a larger study looking at the efficacy of the biopesticide VectoMax FG for control of larval Culex quinquefasciatus, USGS and DOFAW personnel monitored adult mosquitoes (Culex quinquefasciatus and Aedes japonicus) along the Kawaikoi Stream during late summer, September through November 2016 and 2017. Ten trap sites were selected across a 1-kilometer grid centered on the intersection of the Alakai Swamp Trail and Kawaikoi Stream, Alakai Wilderness Preserve, Kauai. Traps were located at least 200 meters apart at accessible sites along the stream, valley floor, and adjacent plateau. Both Biogents Sentinel Traps (BGS) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Gravid Traps (GRV) were operated nightly at each site from 1600 to 0700 hr the following morning. Depending on the weather (heavy rains and high water) and trap reliability (battery and CO2 delivery failures) the number of traps operated per night varied considerably. The data was used to compare the weekly relative abundance of mosquitoes (mosquitoes/trap-night) across the trapping season and following VectoMax FG application.

This data set and accompanying metadata is part of a larger data release for a Mark-Release-Recapture Trial with the mosquito Culex quinquefasciatus conducted between October and December 2020.This dataset consists of site coordinates for various types of mosquito traps set out on eight, kilometer-long transects radiating out from a central point where marked mosquitoes were released. The data also includes 6 altitudinal sites along nearby Stainback Highway.

These data were collected as a component of a year-long study examining the seasonal occupancy and distribution of the southern house mosquito Culex quinquefasciatus in Kīpahulu Valley, Haleakalā National Park, which is critical habitat for two endangered Maui endemic forest birds. As a vector of the avian malaria parasite Plasmodium relictum, Culex quinquefasciatus is a key limiting factor of endemic Hawaiian forest birds. The data collected in this study complements a larger study that included adult mosquito monitoring to document the altitudinal distribution, seasonal occurrence, relative abundance of adult mosquitoes, and stream surveys to determine the larval habitat availability and prevalence of larval mosquitoes. Environmental DNA (eDNA) may be used as a non-invasive surveillance tool to complement traditional mosquito monitoring techniques, potentially providing a broader window of time to assess whether mosquito larvae had recently emerged from ephemeral water sources despite the lack of visual confirmation. 195 water samples, including negative controls, were taken in the field from a variety of water sources in two primary locations, Delta and Palikea Camps, within native forests of Kipahulu Valley Maui, during 2022 and 2023. Water sources included those with visible mosquito larvae of two species, Culex quinquefasciatus and Aedes japonicus. eDNA was collected from water sources using three different filtering techniques and filter types. Data describing the sampling conditions was collected such as source dimensions, depth at which water was filtered, substrate type, and volume of water filtered.

A leading contributor to the decline of Hawaiian forest birds is avian malaria caused by the protozoan parasite Plasmodium relictum and that is transmitted by the Southern House Mosquito (Culex quinquefasciatus). For conservation purposes, landscape-scale mosquito control techniques are being considered to disrupt the malaria disease cycle in key Hawaiian forest bird habitats. The implementation of mosquito control strategies is predicated upon knowledge of mosquito distribution and breeding sites, which can be assessed through adult trapping and larval surveys. However, visual searches within aquatic habitats may miss the time-period following the emergence of adults from pupae, at which point seasonal abundance of mosquitoes may be at peak levels. Environmental DNA (eDNA) may be used as a non-invasive surveillance tool to complement traditional mosquito monitoring techniques, potentially providing a broader window of time to assess whether ephemeral water sources serve as mosquito breeding grounds despite the lack of visual confirmation of larvae. In this study two types of experiments, one field- and one lab-based, were conducted to evaluate the suitability of eDNA as a technique to detect Culex quinquefasciatus. For field evaluation, 195 water samples, including negative controls, were taken in the field from a variety of water sources in two primary locations, Delta and Palikea Camps, within native forests of Kīpahulu Valley, Haleakalā National Park, Maui, during 2022 and 2023. As proof in principle, sampled water sources included unoccupied pools in addition to those with visible mosquito larvae of two species, Culex quinquefasciatus and Aedes japonicus. The eDNA was collected from water sources using three different filtering techniques and filter types. Data describing the field sampling conditions included water body source dimensions, substrate type, depth at which water was filtered, volume of water filtered, water filter type, field larval observations, eDNA extraction method, and quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) amplification results for the Culex eDNA assay during 2023-2024. The qPCR assay was used on field collected water samples, field negative controls, and extraction blanks to test for the presence of Culex eDNA shed into natural water sources. The laboratory experiment data consists of quantitative PCR results derived from a targeted assay to detect the presence of Culex quinquefasciatus eDNA shed under controlled laboratory conditions. Water samples from the three replicate container systems were collected throughout the developmental life stages of Culex quinquefasciatus, from egg rafts to beyond adult emergence (n=40), negative control water samples taken alongside experiment samples (n=18), and blank samples as controls during the DNA extraction process (n=2).

This USGS data release consists of five data sets and accompanying metadata for an experimental mark-release-recapture (MMR) study of adult Culex quinquefasciatus conducted in a montane rainforest in Upper Waiākea Forest Reserve on the Island of Hawai'i from October-December 2020 and laboratory survivorship studies and analysis from 2021- 2024. Culex quinquefasciatus is the vector of the avian malaria Plasmodium relictum a key limiting factor of endemic Hawaiian forest birds. The main components of the study include 1) capture counts of wild and marked, laboratory reared-mosquitoes with three different trap types, 2) fluorescence microscopy screening of captured mosquitoes, 3) survivorship of marked mosquitoes in the laboratory, 4) environmental data (temperature, humidity, and precipitation during recapture period (2020) and laboratory temperature data (2020-2021, 2024) and 5) geographical coordinates of all traps. The study was conducted by the US Geological Survey, Pacific Island Ecosystems Research Center in collaboration with Hawai'i Cooperative Study Unit University of Hawai'i at Hilo.

This data set and accompanying metadata is part of a larger data release for a Mark-Release-Recapture (MRR) Trial with the mosquito Culex quinquefasciatus conducted between October and December 2020. These ambient temperatures and relative humidity records are from both the field site where the MRR trial occurred and the insectary where the released mosquitoes were reared and the survivorship experiments were conducted.The second survivorship trial occurred in March of 2024.