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1 September 2015 Late-instar Behavior of Aedes aegypti (Diptera: Culicidae) Larvae in Different Thermal and Nutritive Environments
Michael H. Reiskind, M. Shawn Janairo
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Abstract

The effects of temperature on ectotherm growth have been well documented. How temperature affects foraging behavior is less well explored, and has not been studied in larval mosquitoes. We hypothesized that temperature changes foraging behavior in the aquatic larval phase of the mosquito, Aedes aegypti L. Based on empirical results in other systems, we predicted that foraging effort would increase at higher temperatures in these insects. We tested this prediction over three temperature conditions at two food levels. We measured behaviors by video recording replicated cohorts of fourth-instar mosquitoes and assessing individual behavior and time budgets using an ethogram. We found both food level and temperature had significant impacts on larval foraging behavior, with more time spent actively foraging at low food levels and at low temperatures, and more occurrences of active foraging at both temperature extremes. These results are contrary to some of our predictions, but fit into theoretical responses to temperature based upon dynamic energy budget models.

© The Authors 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com
Michael H. Reiskind and M. Shawn Janairo "Late-instar Behavior of Aedes aegypti (Diptera: Culicidae) Larvae in Different Thermal and Nutritive Environments," Journal of Medical Entomology 52(5), 789-796, (1 September 2015). https://doi.org/10.1093/jme/tjv088
Received: 22 April 2015; Accepted: 8 June 2015; Published: 1 September 2015
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KEYWORDS
climate change
ecology & behavior
immature insects
metabolism/life processes
mosquito borne diseases
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