Day 18 (Tamale Team): Nili, Gambiae, and Pharoensis, oh My!

Wednesday - August 25, 2021

The five hours of sleep we got was just enough to fuel our excitement for the full day of collection and identification. We awoke at 4:30am and put on our field clothes. I have never been a coffee drinker, but our hotel room was stocked with a chocolate drink powder called Milo. I forced myself to consume the hot drink to fill my belly, and, to my surprise, it wasn't half bad. We munched on some granola bars for breakfast and met Hardi outside to begin our drive back to Gbullung.

This time, the drive was less eventful, as the roads were a bit more dry and we remembered the gaping ravine. We arrived in Gbullung just as the sun had begun to rise and the first signs of light were peaking over the horizon. When we stepped into the village, I was transfixed by its beauty. It was so simple and still and peaceful. We walked into the first home and were greeted by the landlord. We learned that it is customary to bow to your knees and repeat the words "nah" as a sign of appreciation and welcome. Eventually, I got the hang of it. For as still and peaceful the village had felt when we arrived, there was a bustle of activity inside of the home. Everyone was awake and the mothers were finishing up cooking breakfast. There were many children running around, in addition to chickens and their little chicks, and a myriad of goats. Each home is really like a small compound. There is an entrance into the home that takes you to the main courtyard area and this is surrounded by 4 or 5 smaller structures in which there is usually a kitchen area, places for everyone to sleep, and a place for the animals.

The morning collections were done with a machine called a Prokopack. It is essentially a low-cost vacuum that extends on a long pole to suck up mosquitos. This collection method is used on rooms where people slept the night before to collect mosquitos that are resting on the walls. This is important in understanding the mosquito behavior. It is also used inside of the animal shelters to get an understanding of which mosquitos are resting there. Unlike the mosquitos from the human landing catches which usually have empty stomachs because they are captured before they can bite, these mosquitos will have stomachs that are full, either with blood, half with blood and half with eggs, or fully with eggs to lay. These conditions are known as fully fed, semi gravid, and gravid, respectively. This is an important notation for collection as well.

While we watched the collections, I took a step back to appreciate the beauty of the village. The children were running about, some playing and the older ones helping to defeather Guinea fowl for the nights meal. Mothers tended to the fires and scrubbed pots. The men of the community held a meeting inside of one of the huts. It was breathtaking to see the harmony inside of the community and I am deeply appreciative to have been granted a small glimpse into their lives.

After the collections were complete, we jumped back into the van and headed back to the office for a day full of mosquito identification. We stopped briefly back at the hotel for a more proper breakfast (and another cup of Milo), and when we arrived at the office, we got right to work.

Jerry and Ernest were really amazing teachers, as they worked to show us the subtle differences between each mosquito species. We took turns peering into the microscope to look at the white "socks" on the legs of the nili mosquito, and the "fur" on the pharoensis. The process took all day, and by the end, we were quite hungry. Jerry joked that we were slowing them down and told us to go to dinner, so the three of us went back to our hotel to get some R&R. Jerry showed up a bit later with a CDC light trap that we set outside the hotel (after much negotiation with the hotel staff and manager).

We called it an early (ish) night and I treated myself to another cup of Milo before bed (let's hope it doesn't become a habit).

-Christina