Mir S. Mulla joined the faculty of the Entomology Department at the
University of California, Riverside in 1956, only two years after the
Riverside campus was established as an independent campus within the
University of California system. Prior to his appointment, Mir received
his B.S. from Cornell University and then moved to the University of
California, Berkeley to pursue his graduate studies. His Ph.D. from
Berkeley, awarded in 1955, completed his formal American education which
was the purpose of his immigration from his native Kandahar in
Afghanistan. In his over 50 years at Riverside, Mir has made an
incalculable impact on vector biology both within the United States and
in developing countries throughout the world. Within Southern
California, Mir's basic and applied research led to the rapid and
sustainable control of mosquitoes and eye gnats in the Coachella Valley
and so directly enabled this region to grow to the thriving, large
community it is today. In 2006 his efforts in facilitating the
development of the low desert of southern California were recognized
through the dedication of the Mir S. Mulla Biological Control Facility
by the Coachella Valley Mosquito and Vector Control District. His
success has been so profound that it remains somewhat cryptic to the
many who now reside in, visit, and enjoy, this region of California,
oblivious to the insect problems that severely restrained development
until Mir and his students ?rst applied their expertise many decades
ago.
