Does Autocthonous Primary Production Influence Oviposition byAedes japonicus japonicus(Diptera: Culicidae) in Container Habitats?

Abstract

Aedes (Finlaya) japonicus japonicus (Theobald) (Diptera: Culicidae) is recently invasive in North America and has expanded its range rapidly since 1998. Throughout its native and expanded range, Ae. j. japonicus larvae are commonly observed in many types of natural and artificial water-filled containers that vary in organic matter content and exposure to sunlight. Larvae are most often found in containers with decaying leaf material or algae, and we postulated that the added autocthonous primary production from algae could be both an important food source for larvae and an influential oviposition attractant to adult Ae. j. japonicus. We tested this hypothesis by placing plastic containers with varied levels of shading to manipulate algal density in the field, and then monitored oviposition by natural populations of Ae. j. japonicus. Over 99% of larvae hatching from eggs laid on the walls of our containers were Ae. j. japonicus, indicating that this species is a dominant colonizer of artificial containers in the study areas. Although full shading treatments effectively reduced algal biomass (significant reduction in chlorophyll a levels), at only one of three sites did this appear to affect Ae. j. japonicus oviposition. We conclude that algae in larval habitats are not a major factor in oviposition choices of adult Ae. j. japonicus females except when in situ primary production is high enough to substantially alter overall organic matter content cues.

An entomological review of invasive mosquitoes in Europe

“…In some areas in North America they preferentially select rock pools (Juliano & Lounibos, 2005) particularly in areas with low summer temperatures (Andreadis & Wolfe, 2010) or high degrees of shade (Armistead et al ., 2012). Elsewhere in the USA and Japan, larvae have been found in various aquatic habitats with varying sunlight, elevation and detrital content, and within both urban and rural settings (Lorenz et al ., 2013). Its distribution and aquatic habitats in North America overlap with Ae.…”

Invasion Biology ofAedes japonicus japonicus(Diptera: Culicidae)

“…j. japonicus readily oviposits in open areas (61), but it is not clear whether larval success is related to habitat microsite characters. Lorenz et al (61) hypothesized that algae in sunlit habitats could play a role in the invasion success, but they found no overall preference for oviposition in containers that had been exposed to sun (high algal production) versus those that were shaded (low algal production). Sota et al (98) suggested that Ae.…”

What Can Larval Ecology Tell Us About the Success ofAedes albopictus(Diptera: Culicidae) Within the United States?: Table 1.

“…Generally, there appears to be weak or absent effects of algae on growth rate or population sizes of container species (Kling et al 2007, Lorenz et al 2013) and Ae. albopictus specifically (Yee et al 2015a).…”