Evolutionary ecology of container breeding mosquitoes.

摘要

Small container breeding mosquitoes comprise a polyphyletic group of mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae) that share the same general type of larval breeding habitats. Their natural habitats include tree holes, leaf axils, bromeliads, rock pools, or any other structure capable of holding some quantities of water. Some species are able to use numerous man-made containers that hold water as breeding habitats, which have allowed several species to colonize human-dominated environments. Concordantly, in multiple occasions, these urban species have moved along with humans and invaded new regions. Various species in the group are important vectors of diseases that affect both humans and domestic animals.;This dissertation is an explores various ecological and evolutionary aspects of container breeding mosquitoes; specifically, the first section of this dissertation analyzes the delay hatch response in Aedes triseriatus as a bet hedging strategy that allows the species to cope with desiccation risks in potential unstable and unpredictable environments. I produced the first report of climate dependency of the hatch response. In addition, I analyzed the functional relationship between climatic factors and hatch response. Structural equation modeling was used to discriminate among hypotheses relating to the functional relationships between population hatch trait and local climatic conditions. The selected model indicates that environmental variables differentially affect the immediate and the delayed, long term hatch patterns. Based on these results, I proposed that the hatch trait is a critical adaptation for the species.;In the second section, I analyzed the case of the invasive mosquito Aedes albopictus, which has colonized the eastern United States in the last 25 years. This study expands the sampled populations across the US to include 34 sites. The geographic population structure and phylogenetic pattern was inferred using the NADH dehydrogenase subunit 5 gene and the occurrence of insertions and deletions in the ITS regions. The analyses of population histories suggest rapid population increases, rapid range expansion, and frequent drift events. The overall results show moderate degrees of geographical population structure, with persistent, human mediated, gene flow.