The invasive Asian Tiger mosquito, Aedes albopictus, is an abundant and
severe pest mosquito in urban and suburban environments across much of
Illinois. Its aggressive daytime biting behavior can greatly impact residents’ quality
of life, and there is considerable concern for its potential to support
autochthonous transmission of introduced pathogens (e.g. Zika virus). The Asian
Tiger mosquito only recently became established in Champaign County, providing
an opportunity to study population-level traits critical to arbovirus
transmission potential near the boundary of its current geographic range. In
the summer of 2018, we used adult mosquito traps and human landing collections (HLCs)
to compare the seasonal abundance and human-biting rate of host-seeking Ae. albopictus among several residential
yards across Champaign-Urbana . The longevity of field-collected, adult
mosquitoes was also measured post-capture to generate estimates of daily
survival and age structure. At all residences sampled, Ae. albopictus was observed to be the most abundant mosquito
attacking humans during the daytime (~95% of specimens collected by HLC).
Average Ae. albopictus landing counts
in Urbana-Champaign were found to be comparable to previously reported values
from locales where this species is long-established and described as very
abundant.
…Read more
Less…