Douglas O Fuller

• PhD
• Professor (Full) at University of Miami

Los Angeles County, California, is one of the areas most affected by arboviruses in the continental United States, reporting the second highest number of West Nile human cases in the nation and one of the highest numbers of imported dengue cases. Culex quinquefasciatus and Aedes aegypti are primary vectors of West Nile and dengue viruses, respectiv...

Urbanization processes are increasing globally. Anthropogenic alterations in the environment have profound effects on biodiversity. Decreased biodiversity due to biotic homogenization processes as a consequence of urbanization often result in increased levels of mosquito vector species and vector-borne pathogen transmission. Understanding how anthr...

Definable habitats at the neighborhood level provide a wide range of favorable habitats with optimal conditions and environmental resources for mosquito survival. Problematic habitats for controlling mosquitoes in urban environments such as tire shops, bromeliad patches, and construction sites must be taken into consideration in the development of...

Chikungunya, dengue, and Zika viruses are all transmitted by Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus mosquito species, had been imported to Florida and caused local outbreaks. We propose a deterministic model to study the importation and local transmission of these mosquito-borne diseases. The purpose is to model and mimic the importation of these virus...

We evaluated how the presence of sugar sources impacted the distribution of Aedes aegypti in different habitats in Durán, Ecuador. Land cover and normalized difference vegetation index maps were used to guide a random point sampling routine to select study grids (30 m × 30 m) in low vegetation (LV) and high vegetation (HV). Five individual plants,...

Background Knowledge of Anopheles resting habitats is needed to advance outdoor malaria vector control. This study presents a technique to map locations of resting habitats using high-resolution satellite imagery (world view 2) and probabilistic Dempster-Shafer (D-S) modelling, focused on a rural village in southern Mali, West Africa where field sa...

Background Malaria control in South America has vastly improved in the past decade, leading to a decrease in the malaria burden. Despite the progress, large parts of the continent continue to be at risk of malaria transmission, especially in northern South America. The objectives of this study were to assess the risk of malaria transmission and vec...

Malaria transmission in Colombia is highly variable in space and time. Using a species distribution model, we mapped potential distribution of five vector species including Anopheles albimanus, An. calderoni, An. darlingi, An. neivai, and An. nuneztovari in five Departments of Colombia where malaria transmission remains problematic. We overlaid the...

With malaria control in Latin America firmly established in most countries and a growing number of these countries in the pre-elimination phase, malaria elimination appears feasible. A review of the literature indicates that malaria elimination in this region will be difficult without locally tailored strategies for vector control, which depend on...

Changes in land use and land cover (LULC) as well as climate are likely to affect the geographic distribution of malaria vectors and parasites in the coming decades. At present, malaria transmission is concentrated mainly in the Amazon basin where extensive agriculture, mining, and logging activities have resulted in changes to local and regional h...

The catastrophic 2010 earthquake in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, led to the large-scale displacement of over 2.3 million people, resulting in rapid and unplanned urbanization in northern Haiti. This study evaluated the impact of this unplanned urbanization on mosquito ecology and vector-borne diseases by assessing land use and change patterns. Land-use c...

We evaluated the distribution expansion of important human visceral leishmaniasis (HVL) and sporadic cutaneous leishmaniasis (SCL) vector species, Phlebotomus perfiliewi and P. perniciosus, throughout central Tunisia. Both visceral and cutaneous leishmaniasis are important vector-borne diseases in Tunisia. With the increase of irrigation in arid ar...

Climate change should be viewed fundamentally as an issue of global justice. Understanding the complex interplay of climatic and socioeconomic trends is imperative to protect human health and lessen the burden of diseases such as dengue fever. Dengue fever is rapidly expanding globally. Temperature, rainfall, and frequency of natural disasters, as...

Halophytic communities such as mangrove forests and buttonwood hammocks tend to border freshwater plant communities as sharp ecotones. Most studies attribute this purely to underlying physical templates, such as groundwater salinity gradients caused by tidal flux and topography. However, a few recent studies hypothesize that self-reinforcing feedba...

Plasmodium vivax radical cure requires the use of primaquine (PQ), a drug that induces haemolysis in glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficient (G6PDd) individuals, which further hampers malaria control efforts. The aim of this work was to study the G6PDd prevalence and variants in Latin America (LA) and the Caribbean region. A systematic search o...

Background The Middle East North Africa (MENA) region is under continuous threat of the re-emergence of West Nile virus (WNV) and Rift Valley Fever virus (RVF), two pathogens transmitted by the vector species Culex pipiens. Predicting areas at high risk for disease transmission requires an accurate model of vector distribution, however, most Cx. pi...

Background: The Middle East North Africa (MENA) region is under continuous threat of the re-emergence of West Nile virus (WNV) and Rift Valley Fever virus (RVF), two pathogens transmitted by the vector species Culex pipiens. Predicting areas at high risk for disease transmission requires an accurate model of vector distribution, however, most Cx. p...

We analyzed trends in time series of the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) from multitemporal satellite imagery for 2001–2010 over the southeastern Everglades where major changes in vegetation structure and type have been associated with sea-level rise and reduced freshwater flow since the 1940s. Non-parametric trend analysis using the...

Despite the importance of mangrove ecosystems in the global carbon budget, the relationships between environmental drivers and carbon dynamics in these forests remain poorly understood. This limited understanding is partly a result of the challenges associated with in situ flux studies. Tower-based CO2 eddy covariance (EC) systems are installed in...

Despite the importance of mangrove ecosystems in the global carbon budget, the relationships between environmental drivers and carbon dynamics in these forests remain poorly understood. This limited understanding is partly a result of the challenges associated with in situ flux studies. Tower-based carbon dioxide eddy covariance (EC) systems are in...

Background Anopheles arabiensis is a particularly opportunistic feeder and efficient vector of Plasmodium falciparum in Africa and may invade areas outside its normal range, including areas separated by expanses of barren desert. The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate how spatial models can project future irrigated cropland and potential, new...

Anopheles albimanus is among the most important vectors of human malaria in Mesoamerica and the Caribbean Basin (M-C). Here, we use topographic data and 1950-2000 climate (near present), and future climate (2080) layers obtained from general circulation models (GCMs) to project the probability of the species' presence, p(s), using the species distr...

Irrigation along the Nile River has resulted in dramatic changes in the biophysical environment of Upper Egypt. In this study we used a combination of MODIS 250 m NDVI data and Landsat imagery to identify areas that changed from 2001-2008 as a result of irrigation and water-level fluctuations in the Nile River and nearby water bodies. We used two d...

Latin America contributes 1-1.2 million clinical malaria cases to the global malaria burden of about 300 million per year. In 21 malaria endemic countries, the population at risk in this region represents less than 10% of the total population exposed worldwide. Factors such as rapid deforestation, inadequate agricultural practices, climate change,...

Geographic profiling is a statistical tool originally developed in criminology to prioritise large lists of suspects in cases of serial crime. Here, we use two data sets--one historical and one modern--to show how it can be used to locate the sources of infectious disease. First, we re-analyse data from a classic epidemiological study, the 1854 Lon...

We examined the relationships between two satellite-derived vegetation indices and foliar δ15N values obtained from dominant canopy species in a set of tree islands located in the Everglades National Park in South Florida, USA. These tree islands constitute important nutrient hotspots in an otherwise P-limited wetland environment. Foliar δ15N value...

We evaluated three spatially explicit land use and cover change (LUCC) models to project deforestation from 2005-2020 in the carbon-rich peat swamp forests (PSF) of Central Kalimantan, Indonesia. Such models are increasingly used to evaluate the impact of deforestation on carbon fluxes between the biosphere and the atmosphere. We considered both bu...

We examined the relationships between two satellite-derived vegetation indices and foliar delta15N values obtained from dominant canopy species in a set of tree islands located in the Everglades National Park in South Florida, USA. These tree islands constitute important nutrient hotspots in an otherwise P-limited wetland environment. Based on the...

We present a spatially explicit, multi-criteria evaluation (MCE) that uses twelve input layers derived from Landsat-7 and other data derived from remotely sensed observations to create composite maps that integrate information on infrastructure, biology, and physical factors related to known threats to biodiversity in the province of East Kalimanta...

Dengue fever is transmitted mainly by the mosquito species Aedes aegypti, which breeds in water-filled containers in tropical urban areas. In this study medium- and high-resolution satellite (ASTER and QuickBird) imagery were used to map tree cover and built-up surfaces in Puntarenas, Costa Rica, where dengue fever has been endemic since 1993. Hard...

Dengue is currently the most important arboviral disease globally and is usually associated with built environments in tropical areas. Remotely sensed information can facilitate the study of urban mosquito-borne diseases by providing multiple temporal and spatial resolutions appropriate to investigate urban structure and ecological characteristics...

Abstract Dengue fever (DF) and denguehemorrhagic,fever (DHF) are growing,health concerns throughout Latin America and the Caribbean. This study focuses on Costa Rica, which

Dengue fever (DF) and dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF) are growing health concerns throughout Latin America and the Caribbean. This study focuses on Costa Rica, which experienced over 100 000 cases of DF/DHF from 2003 to 2007. We utilized data on sea-surface temperature anomalies related to the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and two vegetation i...

Entomological surveys in urban areas are often biased by selecting houses or locations with known high vector densities. A sampling strategy was developed for Puntarenas, Costa Rica, using high-resolution satellite imagery. Grids from the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer and a QuickBird classified land cover map were u...

The availability of high resolution commercial remote sensing has contributed to a revolution in the application of satellite Earth Observation (EO) methods to the analysis of transportatio n networks. Other geospatial technologies, including GIS and the GPS, sharply enhance the utility of EO data in identifying potential road hazards and providing...

Dengue is the most important arboviral disease worldwide and the principal vector-borne disease in Costa Rica. Control of Aedes aegypti populations through source reduction is still considered the most effective way of prevention and control, although it has proven ineffective or unsustainable in many areas with a history of mosquito control. In th...

The impacts of two hurricanes (Katrina and Wilma) were assessed on 44,390 ha of protected mangroves in southwest Florida using a series of 20m multispectral SPOT and 1-km MODIS images. Established empirical relationships between mangrove leaf area index (LAI) and the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) were used to generate four different...

The extent of tropical deforestation is now being tracked by actors in the nongovernmental, academic, private and government sectors using several different sources of satellite imagery. This paper presents an overview of the satellite systems that can be used for operational forest monitoring in the tropics and examines some recent trends in their...

We examined the spatiotemporal patterns of fire in insular Southeast Asia from July 1996 to December 2001 using a set of consistent, nighttime fire observations provided by the Along Track Scanning Radiometer (ATSR) sensor. Monthly ATSR fire counts were analyzed relative to georeferenced climatic and land-cover data from a variety of sources. We fo...

Land surface conditions are changing rapidly in Southeast Asia as forests are cleared for plantations and as frequent wildfires burn vegetation in different parts of the region. Of particular concern is the recent loss of lowland tropical forest cover in Indonesia. This loss of forest not only exacerbates flooding in urban areas and increases soil...

The distribution of invasive Melaleuca (Melaleuca quinquenervia (Cav.) S.T. Blake) was mapped using 4-m spatial resolution, multispectral IKONOS imagery in an area of south Florida along the eastern edge of Everglades National Park. Detection of Melaleuca stands was achieved using a back-propagation neural network classifier, which allowed identifi...

Deforestation in Indonesia poses a significant threat to the region's biodiversity. We mapped forest cover in Kalimantan, Indonesia, in 2002, with imagery provided by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MODIS). The MODIS‐based forest and nonforest map showed good agreement with other sources of recent data on forest cover. Comparison of M...

Smoke and haze blanketed western Indonesia during August and September 2002, signaling the arrival of another El Niño event in Southeast Asia. Although not as severe as the 1997-1998 El Niño event, the 2002 El Niño produced drought conditions in western Indonesia that favored extensive biomass burning in lowland areas of Borneo, Sumatra, and Sulawe...

Multi-criteria evaluation (MCE) provides a way to integrate different spatial data layers in a geographic information system to create composite maps representing risk. We utilized MCE in a raster GIS to evaluate risk along several paved road segments on the Hopi Reservation in Arizona. In our MCE tests we included risk factors such as proximity to...

Land surface albedo is an important variable in General Circulation Models (GCMs). When land cover is modified through anthropogenic land use, changes in land-surface albedo may produce atmospheric subsidence and reduction of rainfall. In this study we examined albedo time series and their relationships with rainfall, land cover, and population in...

Rain-use efficiency (RUE) provides a sensitive metric for evaluating ecosystem resilience in drylands. The aim of this study is to estimate RUE and determine environmental changes along a spatial gradient of arid lands in southern Tunisia through the use of Modis level 2 G data. This region, situated in northern Africa, usually receives less than 1...

Measurements of tree canopy closure and field-layer reflectance were made in a series of plots in protected areas of eastern Zambia as part of a multiyear study of savanna woodlands. The plots were located in the Luangwa Valley and adjacent plateaux, which contained a range of vegetation types found in southern Africa. The vegetation consisted of f...

In order to study forest fragmentation in the Virginia, USA Piedmont, a series of Landsat images from 1973, 1987, and 1999 covering a rapidly developing area (Loudoun County) was used to classify forest from non-forest. The classified images were analyzed using a geographic information system (GIS) to determine the spatial and temporal patterns of...

Fire scars in Kalimantan, Indonesia were mapped using optical and thermal data from the NOAA-AVHRR satellite sensor. Forty-four high-resolution picture transmission images mapped at 1 km spatial resolution were selected for a period immediately after intense biomass burning from October-December 1997. Composite images of the Normalized Difference V...

A major goal in satellite remote sensing of fire is to derive globally accurate measurements of the spatial and temporal distribution of burning. To date, the main sensor employed in fire and fire-scar detection has been the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) on board NOAA polar-orbiting platforms. Other sources supporting fire observ...

Fire products derived from NOAA-AVHRR channel 3 images and DMSP-OLS are compared to determine the most appropriate AVHRR channel 3 thresholds and methods for operational monitoring of fire in Kalimantan, Indonesia. The results indicate that about 77% of AVHRR fire cells derived from a temperature threshold of 321 deg K applied to channel 3 daytime...

Growing archives of NDVI images derived from the NOAA-AVHRR provide opportunities for time-series analysis of changes in land-use and cover. In this study a time series (1987-1993) of 1.1 km spatial resolution NDVI images obtained from the NOAA-AVHRR sensor was used in combination with aboveground rangeland harvest measurements and agricultural yie...

Upwelling radiance from savanna woodlands may originate from two separate layers: (1) the field layer, which is a mixture of soil, litter and herbs, and (2) the tree layer composed of woody parts and leaves. Unless detailed field data are available for a particular savanna location, it is unknown how the individual layers may influence the red and...

Foliar dynamics in tropical southern Africa are examined using meteorological satellite observations (NOAA-AVHRR) collected from 1981–1990, processed as monthly Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) images, and resampled to 7.6 km resolution. Time series of NDVI and raingauge data are presented and analyzed using a variety of statistics. Th...

The dynamics of leaf display (foliar phenology) in south-central Africa are examined and their relationship with climatic variation from 1981-1990. Regional-scale (7.6-km resolution) foliar phenology was observed using time series of the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) derived from multitemporal Advanced Very High Resolution Radiomete...