Chi-Chien Kuo, Ph.D. in Ecology, UC Davis (Principle Investigator) I have broad interests in ecological questions and my past research experience has inspired me to pursue interdisciplinary collaboration. First trained as a mammalogist, my later interest in human health has led me to the study of wildlife-related vector-borne and zoonotic diseases. My research mainly focuses on scrub typhus, but one of my another career goals is to have a better understanding of ectoparasites in wildlife of Taiwan. |
劉鎮 Jhen Liu (Graduate Student)
I studied avian conservation and policy making for my master degree. After that, I worked on amphibians and plant galls when I was a research assistant. Now, for my Ph.D. studies, I focus on mosquito ecology and mosquito-borne disease. For example, the mosquito habitat-association is a cornerstone of mosquito species richness and population abundance, but it is barely studied in Taiwan. Moreover, identifying ecological drivers of disease dynamics is still a fruitful issue to studies. In the future, I want to use field work data and statistical modelling to study ecological issues to improve recognition of vector-borne diseases. My hobby is reading environmental literature and history of science. I am also interesting in popular science writing. Besides, I love travelling, bird watching, and hiking. |
Lab alumni
宋正心 Jheng-Sin Song (Graduate student)
Thesis title: Effects of different farming practices on rice paddy animal community during cultivation and fallow periods in northern Taiwan Publication: Song JS & Kuo CC. 2022. Farming practice affects rice field animal biota during cultivation but not fallow periods in Taiwan. Ecosphere 13: e4069.. |
吳德倫 De-Lun Wu (Graduate Student)
Thesis title: The effect of exotic species habitat expansion on arthropod disease vectors in a volcanic island Publication: Wu DL, Shih HC, Wang JK, Teng HJ & Kuo CC. 2021. Commensal rodent habitat expansion enhances arthropod disease vectors on a tropical volcanic island. Frontiers in Veterinary Science. 8: 736216. |
魏辰宇 Chen-Yu Wei (Graduate Student)
Thesis title: Variation in abundance of larval trombiculid mites among habitats in Penghu Publication: Wei CY, Wang JK, Shih HC, Wang HC & Kuo CC. 2020. Invasive plants facilitated by socioeconomic change harbor vectors of scrub typhus and spotted fever. PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases 14: e0007519. (cover story) |
王人凱 Jen-Kai Wang (Research Assistant)
Publication: 2. Wu DL, Shih HC, Wang JK, Teng HJ & Kuo CC. 2021. Commensal rodent habitat expansion enhances arthropod disease vectors on a tropical volcanic island. Frontiers in Veterinary Science. 8: 736216. 1. Wei CY, Wang JK, Shih HC, Wang HC & Kuo CC. 2020. Invasive plants facilitated by socioeconomic change harbor vectors of scrub typhus and spotted fever. PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases 14: e0007519. (cover story) |
Ian Best (Graduate Student & Postdoc Researcher )
Publication: 1. Best IN, Shaner PJL, Lo HY, Pei KJC & Kuo CC. 2020. Bigger doesn't mean bolder: behavioral variation of four wild rodent species to novelty and predation risk following a fast-slow continuum. Frontiers in Zoology 17: 27. 2. Best IN, Shaner PJL, Pei KJC & Kuo CC. 2023. Of mice and cats: inter-specific variation in prey responses to direct and indirect cues. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology 77: 3. 3. Best IN, Shaner PJL, Pei KJC & Kuo CC. 2022. Farmers’ knowledge, attitudes and control practices of rodents in an agricultural area of Taiwan. Agronomy 12: 1169. |
顧庭翔 Ting-Hsiang Ku (Graduate Student & Research Assistant)
Thesis title: The distribution of hard ticks in Green Island: potential effects of habitat types and introduction of exotic sika deer Publication: Ku TH, Liao HM, Nelson S, Cimo E, Jiang L & Kuo CC. Surveillance of ticks on a tropical island with introduced ungulates. In press. Journal of Medical Entomology |