Investigation of the basic factors affecting the oviposition site preference of Culex pipiens and Anopheles maculipennis (Diptera: Culicidae) mosquito species

The oviposition site areas, where the mosquitoes oviposit their eggs and thus pass the larval and pupa periods, are an environment which affects the whole life stage of the arthropod. The characteristics of this environment may directly affect the developmental duration of the mosquito, body size, survival, feeding and reproductive performance of adults, vectorial capacity and population density. For relevant reasons, the identification of the reproductive site characteristics of mosquitoes and / or their tendency or preferences on oviposition site is important in determining both the control and the basic ecological framework. In this study, some parameters which may be effective on the preferences of reproduction area of Culex pipiens and Anopheles maculipennis species were investigated. At this point, the tendency of gravid females to oviposit in the same area is discussed in the intra- and inter-species plane. In the study conducted in semi-natural greenhouse environment, CDC ovitraps (h: 15 cm; R: 11 cm) with fry fish feed and 500 ml water (h: 4 cm) were placed in appropriate sizes of wire cages (100 x 200x100 cm). Engorged female mosquitoes were placed in the cages, and during the trial, the number of females in the cage was adjusted to at least equal to the number of ovitraps. In the experiments, species were put together individually and together. The number of eggs was recorded daily during the trial and trials were terminated with the first pupa seen. As a result; in the Cx. pipiens trials, at least one egg package was left to the single ovitrap and 12 eggs were left as the highest level. In the trials related to An. maculipennis females, no eggs were seen in four traps, the maximum number of eggs left to the single ovitrap was 364. In the trials with two species together, it was inspected that Cx. pipiens oviposited in all ovitraps, however An. maculipennis did not lay eggs in three ovitraps, and 495 eggs were left in single ovitrap as the highest level. In trials, none of An. maculipennis eggs reached the adult stage, but Cx. pipiens successfully reached the adult stage. This study shows that the presence of eggs of the same species activates the female to oviposit in the area, and Cx. pipiens is much less selective than An. maculipennis. Keywords: Anopheles maculipennis, Culex pipiens, oviposition site preference 2018, 65 pages