Giants in History: Rampa Rattanarithikul

Rampa Rattanarithikul is a Thai entomologist who is a leading expert on mosquitoes. Rattanarithikul began her scientific career as a technician collecting mosquito specimens for the United States Operations Mission (USOM) malaria control program. Throughout her career, she discovered 23 species and officially described 13 others. Two species are named after her: Anopheles rampae and Uranotaenia rampae. With encouragement from the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research (WRAIR), she developed illustrated guides to the mosquitoes of Thailand. In 2011, Rattanarithikul received the American Mosquito Control Association's John N. Belkin Memorial Award in recognition of her contributions to mosquito biology. Rattanarithikul and her husband established the Museum of World Insects and Natural Wonders in Chiang Mai to share their passion for the natural world and raise awareness for the importance of conservation. On display are insect species, stones, petrified wood, fossils and wood carvings that the couple have collected.