Twenty Years of Complaints: Arthropods of Medical Importance in Maui County, Hawaii, from 2000 to 2019

Abstract

A primary function of the Vector Control (VC) branch of the Hawaii Department of Health is managing invasive arthropods that endanger the health of Hawaii’s residents and visitors and threaten disruption to the tourism-dependent economy. To partly accomplish this task, VC inspectors and entomologists ameliorate issues of vector nuisance raised through public complaints. In this study I assessed trends in public complaints received by the Maui VC office between the years 2000 and 2019, by year, month, island region, and pest type. Mosquitoes were the most complained-about pest across all island regions, but complaints varied little by year and month. Hymenopteran (primarily bee and yellowjacket) complaints were second-most common and were more frequent at high elevation areas on the slopes of Haleakala (= “Upcountry”). Hymenopteran complaints followed an annual unimodal trend with a peak in August and a trough in January. Altogether, complaints of outdoor pests (e.g., Hymenopterans, nuisance flies) have decreased over the past 20 years, while complaints of indoor pests (e.g., cockroaches, bed bugs) have increased. Future management of vector pests in Maui County should be carried out with consideration of these long-term trends.