In many urban areas, low-income neighborhoods have more mosquitoes, making residents more vulnerable to mosquito-borne diseases. A new study co-authored by scientists at Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies found that invasive, nonnative plants, which tend to be more common in low-income areas, boosted mosquito populations in Baltimore, MD, and Washington, DC. “We also found that the nonnative vegetation may reduce competition between the two mosquito species, allowing them to coexist in low-income areas.” Another possibility is that, because the invasive plants and invasive mosquito species in this study shared native habitats in China, the mosquitoes may be adapted to thrive among these plants. “They also provide hope that governments and city residents can protect public health in low-income communities by replacing nonnative plants with native ones.”