Co-occurrence Patterns of the Dengue Vector Aedes aegypti and Aedes mediovitattus, a Dengue Competent Mosquito in Puerto Rico

Abstract

Aedes aegypti is implicated in dengue transmission in tropical and subtropical urban areas around the world. Ae. aegypti populations are controlled through integrative vector management. However, the efficacy of vector control may be undermined by the presence of alternative, competent species. In Puerto Rico, a native mosquito, Ae. mediovittatus, is a competent dengue vector in laboratory settings and spatially overlaps with Ae. aegypti. It has been proposed that Ae. mediovittatus may act as a dengue reservoir during inter-epidemic periods, perpetuating endemic dengue transmission in rural Puerto Rico. Dengue transmission dynamics may therefore be influenced by the spatial overlap of Ae. mediovittatus, Ae. aegypti, dengue viruses, and humans. We take a landscape epidemiology approach to examine the association between landscape composition and configuration and the distribution of each of these Aedes species and their cooccurrence. We used remotely sensed imagery from a newly launched satellite to map landscape features at very high spatial resolution. We found that the distribution of Ae. aegypti is positively predicted by urban density and by the number of tree patches, Ae. mediovittatus is positively predicted by the number of tree patches, but negatively predicted by large contiguous urban areas, and both species are predicted by urban density and the number of tree patches. This analysis provides evidence that landscape composition and configuration is a surrogate for mosquito community composition, and suggests that mapping landscape structure can be used to inform vector control efforts as well as to inform urban planning.

Vertebrate Hosts ofAedes aegyptiandAedes mediovittatus(Diptera: Culicidae) in Rural Puerto Rico

“…mediovittatus and Ae. aegypti (a proxy for human–virus presence) based on environmental and remote sensing data that will be used to orient the collection of specimens for virus isolation (Little et al 2011). …”

An Improved Trap to Capture Adult Container-Inhabiting Mosquitoes

“…Houses were selected from a layer of all the houses in the community in a Geographical Information System (Little et al 2011), using the random selection tool of ArcGIS (ArcGIS 9.2; Esri, Redlands, CA). In a previous study, both Ae.…”

“…(Gymnometopa) mediovittatus (Coq. ), the Caribbean tree hole mosquito (Cox et al 2007; Barrera 2011; Barrera et al 2011, 2012; Little et al 2011). Aedes mediovittatus is native to the Greater Antilles and is a competent vector of dengue viruses (DENV) (Gubler et al 1985, Freier and Rosen 1988).…”

“…Aedes aegypti is more closely associated with dense urban areas, whereas Ae. mediovittatus is more frequently associated with vegetated areas (Cox et al 2007, Little et al 2011). It is to be noted that Ae.…”

“…aegypti and Ae. mediovittatus were recently identified using the BGS traps and remote sensing in southern Puerto Rico (Little et al 2011). These traps captured 10 times fewer female Ae.…”