Oviposition is a major event in the life history of mosquitoes, shaping both individual fitness and vectorial capacity. Several exogenous factors have been shown as important for the dynamic forcing of oviposition at finely (hourly) and coarsely (monthly or season to season) grained temporal scales. However, field studies addressing the interplay of weather factors on oviposition dynamics at th...

IntraspeciÞc geographic variation in morphology and behavior can be indicative of populations that are adapted to local environmental conditions. Heterogeneity in the abiotic environment, such as soil conditions, can be an important driver of local adaptation. In southFlorida,mean body sizes in populations of the lubber grasshopper Romalea microptera (Beauvois) (Orthoptera: Acrididae), increase...

Selection of oviposition sites by gravid females is a critical behavioral step in the reproductive cycle of Anopheles coluzzii, which is one of the principal Afrotropical malaria vector mosquitoes. Several studies suggest this decision is mediated by semiochemicals associated with potential oviposition sites. To better understand the chemosensory basis of this behavior and identify compounds th...

Infections can have detrimental effects on the fitness of an animal. Reproducing females may therefore be sensitive to cues of infection and be able to adaptively change their oviposition strategy in the face of infection. As one possibility, females could make a terminal investment and shift reproductive effort from future to current reproduction as life expectancy decreases. We hypothesized t...

1. Transection of the ventral nerve cord of female grasshoppers activates the rhythmical motor programme for oviposition digging. 2. Electrical stimulation of the cut nerve cord had the following effects on elicited oviposition motor activity: (i) shortand long-lasting inhibition of activity, (ii) phase resetting and (iii) modulation of burst frequency. 3. Cold saline applied to the nerve cord ...

Egg hatching of the maple aphid, Periphyllus californiensis Shinji, was observed on saplings of Acer amoenum Carriere in two microhabitats, i.e., the understory of a maple stand (a shaded site) and an open area in a nursery (a sunny site), over a 2-year period. Buds of A. amoenum opened earlier at the shaded site than at the sunny site and eggs of P. californiensis also hatched a little earlier...

Several environmental parameters may influence biological processes of several aquatic invertebrates, such as the Monogenea. Current analysis investigates oviposition, hatching success and infestation of Aphanoblastella mastigatus, a parasite of the silver catfish Rhamdia quelen at different temperatures (~ 24 and 28 °C) and salinity (by adding sodium chloride to water, at concentrations 0, 5 a...

Suboptimal larval habitats modulate oviposition of the malaria vector mosquito Anopheles gambiae s.s.. CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 International license peer-reviewed) is the author/funder. It is made available under a The copyright holder for this preprint (which was not. Abstract Selection of oviposition sites by gravid females is a critical behavioural preference in the reproductive cycle of Anopheles g...

Even though Chagas disease is rare in the Brazilian Amazon, the conditions for the establishment of domiciliated cycles prevail in many areas where triatomines are of frequent occurrence. In Roraima, a previous serological and entomological survey in three agricultural settlements showed the existence of all transmission cycle elements, i.e., individuals infected by Trypanosoma cruzi, triatomin...

The effects of dietary sugar and body size on the oviposition of Ae. aegypti were studied under laboratory conditions. In female mosquitoes provided with sugar, the start of maximum fecundity was significantly delayed and the oviposition period was longer than in females provided with water. The peak of oviposition was also delayed in sugar-fed females. Large females oviposited more eggs per da...