Effects of a copepod predator on the survivorship and development of Aedes albopictus (Diptera: Culicidae)

概要

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Effects of the predator Mesocylops pehperiensis (Hu) (Copepoda: Cyclopoida) on the survivorship and the development of a cohort of Aedes albopictus (Skuse) (Diptera: Culicidae) to pupation were examined in large (diameter = 8.5 cm and depth = 5.5 cm) and small (diameter = 3.5 cm and depth = 5.5 cm) containers with leaves from the maple Acer buergerianum (Miq.) (Angiospermae: Aceraceae) as larval food. In the absence of the predator, survival was higher and developmental time shorter in the large container. M. pehpeiensis reduced the survivorship of Ae. albopictus from 93% to 12% in the large container and from 34% to 0% in the small container. Ae. albopictus larvae developed to larger size in shorter time in the large container with the predator than in those without the predator. These results indicate that the predator has both direct (reducing the number of mosquitoes) and indirect (enhancement of the fitness of survived individuals fitness) effects on mosquito populations, which may cause difficulty in mosquito control under some conditions. So, vector control operations including the use of copepods can be counterproductive with regard to potentially crucial interactions between the absence of competition, body size and its epidemiological importance in container-breeding mosquito such Ae. albopictus.
日本衛生動物学会の論文
2003-06-15