Aquatic thermal conditions predict the presence of native and invasive rock pool Aedes (Diptera: Culicidae) in the southern Appalachians, U.S.A.

ABSTRACTThe native rock pool mosquito,Aedes atropalpus (Coquillett), and the invasiveAedes japonicus (Theobald) have been found in many types of artificial and natural containers throughout North America. Little is known about the ecology of these two species in habitats where they co ‐occur, although multiple investigators have reported the decline of the native species concurrent with the introduction and spread of the invasive species. Here we report the results of riverine rock pool collections (n=503) in the southern Appalachian Mountains between 2009‐2015. Surface water temperatures strongly predicted the presence of each species across a broad range of observed temperatures (11‐39.8° C). For every unit of increase in temperature (°C) the odds of collectingAe. atropalpus larvae increased by 0.34 while the odds of collectingAe. japonicus larvae decreased by 0.28. NoAe. japonicus larvae or pupae were collected at temperatures greater than 36 ° C; however, immatureAe. atropalpus were found in rock pools with temperatures up to 39.8 ° C. In contrast,Ae. japonicus were highly abundant in cooler rock pools (<17 ° C) whereAe. atropalpus were infrequent or absent. Our findings suggest that in spite of the successful invasion byAe. japonicus,Ae. atropalpus remains well established in the southern Appalachian Mountains. Given the strong correlation of temperature with the presence of the two species and the contrasting absence of each species at observed temperature...

Source: Journal of Vector Ecology - May 22, 2019 Category: Biology Authors: Brian D. Byrd, Charlie B. Sither, J. Alan Goggins, Samantha Kunze ‐Garcia, Kendra N. Pesko, Dulce M. Bustamante, John M. Sither, James R. Vonesh, George F. O'Meara Tags: Original Article Source Type: research