Mosquito vectors are extending their range via international travel and trade. Climate change makes New Zealand an increasingly suitable environment for less tropically adapted exotic mosquito vectors to become established. This shift will add a multiplier effect to existing risks of both the establishment of new species and of resident exotic species extending into new areas. We describe trends in the border interceptions of exotic mosquitoes and evaluate the role of imported goods as a pathway for these introductions. Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus, the two most commonly intercepted species, were only intercepted in Auckland. Used tyres and machinery were the main mode of entry for both species. The majority of Ae. albopictus were transported as larvae by sea, while most Ae. aegypti were transported as adults by air. Continuing introductions of these mosquitoes, mainly arriving via Japan or Australia, increase the risk of the local transmission of mosquito-borne diseases in New Zealand in general and in the Auckland region in particular. These findings reinforce the need for a high performing and adequately resourced national biosecurity system, particularly port surveillance and inspection. Recommended biosecurity improvements are described.
The acoustic behaviour of four Aphodius dung beetle species from the Pacific Northwest of the USA was investigated. Male Aphodius produce substrate vibrations when they meet a conspecific female in a dung pat. The temporal structure of the substrate vibrations and the stridulatory organs are described. The vibrations are species-specific songs that are emitted during courtship. The stridulatory organ is of the abdomino-alary type in the investigated species. Morphological differences with regard to the detailed structure are present.
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