Life table estimates for two common Aedes mosquito species: observations from larval habitats of Kolkata, India

Abstract

Life table features of dengue vectors are significant for the evaluation of the disease transmission potential. Using information on the larval stages thriving in different larval habitats in Kolkata, India, we evaluated life table features of Aedes aegypti (Linnaeus, 1762) and A. albopictus (Skuse, 1894) (Diptera: Culicidae). Daily monitoring of the larval habitats inhabited exclusively by either A. aegypti or A. albopictus was accomplished in order to estimate the instar-wise abundance and, based on it, the larval life table was constructed. Out of 90 positive larval habitats, ~34.4% was exclusively for A. aegypti and ~35.6% for A. albopictus. The life expectancy (ex) of the instar I larva of A. aegypti and A. albopictus was 5 and 4 days, respectively. There was no significant difference found in survival of immature (t(2),14 = 1.144; p = 0.272) and adult (t(2),6 = 0.536; p = 0.611) individuals of the two species. Mortality of the immature stages of A. aegypti and A. albopictus was 82.14% and 96.15%, respectively. Lower values of the life expectancy of both Aedes species suggest faster larval development, as observed in other tropical and subtropical urban areas of the world.