Connecticut State The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station

John J. Shepard

Department of Environmental Sciences
The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station
123 Huntington Street
P.O. Box 1106
New Haven, CT 06504-1106
Voice: (203) 974-8543 Fax: (203) 974-8538
E-mail:  John.Shepard@ct.gov   

Expertise:
John has expertise in the identification of larval and adult mosquitoes in the northeastern U.S., mosquito biology, and the ecology/epidemiology of arboviruses in the northeastern U.S., particularly West Nile virus and Eastern Equine Encephalitis.

Education:
B.S., Biology, Fairfield University, 1995
M.S., Biology, Southern Connecticut State University, 2005

Current Activities:
As a participant in the Connecticut Mosquito and Arbovirus Surveillance Program:

  • Coordinate trapping of mosquitoes (June to October) from 91 locations
  • Oversee identification and submission of mosquitoes for arbovirus testing (approx. 200,000 mosquitoes annually)

Research Interests:
The biology and ecology/epidemiology of mosquitoes and mosquito–borne diseases in the northeast, phylogenetic relationships of mosquitoes based on genetic sequences, the identification of mosquitoes using molecular-based techniques

Station career:Research Assistant II, 1995-1997
Research Technician I, 1997-1999
Research Technician II, 1999-2008
Assistant Scientist I, 2008-present

Selected publications available from the author, John.Shepard@ct.gov

  • Andreadis, T. G., Thomas, M. C. and Shepard, J. J.  2005.  Identification guide to the mosquitoes of Connecticut. Conn. Agric. Exp. Stn. Bull. 966. 178pp. (PDF)
  • Shepard, J. J., Andreadis, T.G., Vossbrinck, C. R. 2006. Molecular Phylogeny and Evolutionary Relationships Among Mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae) from the Northeastern United States Based on Small Subunit Ribosomal DNA (18S rDNA) Sequences.  J. Med. Entomol. 43:443-454.  (PDF)
  • Armstrong, P. M, Andreadis, T. G., Finan S., Shepard, J. J., Thomas, M. C., and Anderson, J. F.  2011.  Detection of infectious virus from field-collected mosquitoes by Vero cell culture assay. J. Visualized Exper. 52. http://www.jove.com/index/Details.stp?ID=2889,doi: 10.3791/2889. (PDF)
  • Andreadis, T. G., Shepard, J. J. and Thomas, M. C.  2012.  Field observations on the overwintering ecology of Culiseta melanura in the northeastern United States. J. Amer. Mosq. Control Assoc. 28:286-291. (PDF)
  • Andreadis, T. G., Simakova, A. V., Vossbrinck, C. R, Shepard, J. J., Yurchenko, Y. A.  2012.  Ultrastructural characterization and comparative phylogenetic analysis of new Microsporidia from Siberian mosquitoes: evidence for coevolution and host switching. J. Invertebr. Pathol. 109:59-75.(PDF)
  • Molaei, G., Thomas, M. C., Muller, T. Medlock, Shepard, J. J., Armstrong, P. M. and Andreadis, T. G.  2016.  Dynamics of vector-host interactions in avian communities in four eastern equine encephalitis virus foci in the northeastern U.S. PLoS Neglected Trop. Dis. 10(1):e0004347:doi:10.1371/journal.pntd.0004347. (PDF)
  • Shepard, J. J., Andreadis, T. G., Thomas, M. C and Molaei, G.  2016.  Host associations of mosquitoes at eastern equine encephalitis virus foci in Connecticut, USA. Parasites& Vectors 9:474 DOI 10.1186/s13071-016-1765-1. (PDF)
  • Armstrong P.M., Andreadis T.G., Shepard J.J., Thomas M.C. 2017. Northern range expansion of the Asian tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus): Analysis of mosquito data from Connecticut, USA. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 11(5): e0005623. (PDF)