Nutritional availability and larval density dependence in <scp><i>Aedes aegypti</i></scp>

Heath, Katherine; Paton, Robert S; Wilson, Anthony J.; Bonsall, Michael B.

doi:10.1111/een.12877

Cited by 3 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 89 publications

(138 reference statements)

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…On the contrary, the avoidance response in a higher density can minimize progeny competition. Similar relationships involving the density of eggs and immatures influencing female choice have been demonstrated in laboratory and field studies 15 , 16 , 41 – 47 . Our study established this density-dependent behavior relationship among adult females of Ae.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 72%

Female Aedes aegypti mosquitoes use communal cues to manage population density at breeding sites

Costa-da-Silva,

Cabal,

Lopez

et al. 2024

Commun Biol

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Where a female mosquito lays her eggs creates the conditions for reproductive success. Here we identify a communal behavior among ovipositing female mosquitoes. When choosing equal breeding sites, gravid Aedes aegypti aggregate more often than expected. This aggregation occurs when water contact is restricted and does not require the presence of eggs. Instead, the aggregation is regulated by the number of females present at the breeding site. Using assays with both occupied and empty oviposition sites, we show that the Orco olfactory co-receptor and a carbon dioxide receptor, Gr3, detect the presence of mosquitoes. orco mutants aggregate more often in empty sites, suggesting attractive olfactory cues influence females to associate with one another. Gr3 mutant females do not prefer either site, suggesting that the CO2 receptor is necessary to evaluate mosquito population density at breeding sites. Further, raising CO2 levels is sufficient to cause wild-type mosquitoes to avoid empty oviposition sites. Our results demonstrate that female mosquitoes can regulate their own population density at breeding sites using attractive and repellent communal cues.

show abstract

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 72%

Female Aedes aegypti mosquitoes use communal cues to manage population density at breeding sites

Costa-da-Silva,

Cabal,

Lopez

et al. 2024

Commun Biol

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…In nature, populations likely experience intermittent resource depletion (Ostfeld and Keesing 2000, Wright 1983, Yee and Juliano 2012, but very few studies have examined how intraspecific competition in such environments can affect the rm TPC. For example, in mosquitoes, field and laboratory studies have examined how resource availability and larval density interact to affect fitness (Gilpin and McClelland 1979, Gimnig et al 2002, Heath et al 2020, Walsh et al 2013, while others have investigated the effect of resource availability and larval density separately (Romeo Aznar et al 2018, Shapiro et al 2016. However, none of these studies have considered environmental temperature.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The effect of resource depletion on the thermal response of mosquito population fitness

et al. 2021

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

1. A population′s maximal growth rate (rm) depends on the survivorship, development, and reproduction of its individuals. In ectotherms, these (functional) traits respond predictably to temperature, which provides a basis for predicting how climatic warming could affect natural populations, including disease vectors and the diseases they transmit. 2. Such predictions generally arise from mathematical models that incorporate the temperature–dependence of traits (thermal performance curves) measured under laboratory conditions. Therefore, the accuracy of these predictions depends on the relevance of lab-measured trait thermal performance curves to natural conditions. However, the joint effect of temperature and resource availability—another key limiting environmental factor in nature—on traits is largely unknown. 3. We investigated how larval competition for ecologically–realistic depleting resources affects the thermal performance of rm and its underlying life history traits in the disease vector in Aedes aegypti. We show that competition at food concentrations below a certain threshold drastically depresses rm across the entire temperature range, causes it to peak at a lower temperature, and narrows the breadth of temperatures over which rm is positive (the thermal niche breath). 4. This resource-dependence of the thermal performance curve of rm is driven primarily by the fact that competition delays development and increases juvenile mortality. This is compounded by reduced size at maturity, which in turn decreases adult lifespan and fecundity. 5. These results show that intensified larval competition in depleting resource environments can significantly affect the temperature–dependence of rm by modulating the thermal responses of underlying traits in a predictable way. This has important implications for forecasting the effects of climate change on population dynamics in the field of not just disease vectors, but holometabolous insects in general.

show abstract

“…Adults emerging from high density conditions tend to be smaller [ 29 – 33 , 35 – 37 , 39 – 42 ] with shorter lifespans [ 18 , 32 , 40 ]. While multiple mechanisms could be responsible for the observed density effects [ 43 – 46 ], work has emphasized the role of competition for nutrient resources associated with increasing density [ 18 , 47 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The size of larval rearing container modulates the effects of diet amount and larval density on larval development in Aedes aegypti

et al. 2023

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Mass-rearing of mosquitoes under laboratory conditions is an important part of several new control techniques that rely on the release of males to control mosquito populations. While previous work has investigated the effect of larval density and diet amount on colony productivity, the role of the size of the container in which larval development takes place has been relatively ignored. We investigated the role of container size in shaping life history and how this varied with density and food availability in Aedes aegypti, an important disease vector and target of mass-rearing operations. For each treatment combination, immature development time and survival and adult body size and fecundity were measured, and then combined into a measure of productivity. We additionally investigated how larval aggregation behaviour varied with container size. Container size had important effects on life history traits and overall productivity. In particular, increasing container size intensified density and diet effects on immature development time. Productivity was also impacted by container size when larvae were reared at high densities (1.4 larva/ml). In these treatments, the productivity metric of large containers was estimated to be significantly lower than medium or small containers. Regardless of container size, larvae were more likely to be observed at the outer edges of containers, even when this led to extremely high localized densities. We discuss how container size and larval aggregation responses may alter the balance of energy input and output to shape development and productivity.

show abstract

Nutritional availability and larval density dependence in Aedes aegypti

Cited by 3 publications

References 89 publications

Female Aedes aegypti mosquitoes use communal cues to manage population density at breeding sites

Female Aedes aegypti mosquitoes use communal cues to manage population density at breeding sites

The effect of resource depletion on the thermal response of mosquito population fitness

The size of larval rearing container modulates the effects of diet amount and larval density on larval development in Aedes aegypti

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About