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Effects of predation by the copepod Mesocyclops ogunnus on the sex ratios of mosquito Aedes albopictus

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Abstract

Cyclopoid copepods are important predators in many aquatic ecosystems and have been used as biological agents in successful programs to control mosquito larvae. However, the impacts of this predation on adult mosquito populations are still poorly understood. The present study compared the sex ratios and body sizes (measured as wing length) of Aedes albopictus mosquitoes emerging from recipients containing the copepod predator Mesocyclops ogunnus with control situations without this predator. We found that copepod predation significantly biased mosquito sex ratios toward females, and that both the males and females emerging from copepod-containing recipients were significantly larger than control insects. The ecological and epidemiological consequences of the changes induced by copepod predation on mosquito populations are discussed.

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Acknowledgments

This work is supported by a research fellowship from CAPES to HCBC and BQS. We would like to thank: E.L. Leite and M.L.V. Diniz.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Systematics and Ecology, Center of Exact Sciences and Nature, Paraíba Federal University, Campus I, João Pessoa, Paraíba, Brazil

    Helton Charllys Batista Cardôso, Thiago Brandão de Assis & Luiz Carlos Serramo Lopez

  2. Regional Program of Graduate Studies in Development and the Environment (PRODEMA), Paraíba Federal University, Campus I, João Pessoa, Paraíba, Brazil

    Bruna Queiroz da Silva

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  1. Helton Charllys Batista Cardôso
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  2. Bruna Queiroz da Silva
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  3. Thiago Brandão de Assis
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  4. Luiz Carlos Serramo Lopez
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Correspondence to Helton Charllys Batista Cardôso.

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Cardôso, H.C.B., da Silva, B.Q., de Assis, T.B. et al. Effects of predation by the copepod Mesocyclops ogunnus on the sex ratios of mosquito Aedes albopictus . Hydrobiologia 705, 55–61 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-012-1379-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-012-1379-3

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