Abstract
BackgroundIdentifying priority areas for vector control is of considerable public health relevance. Arthropod-borne viruses (arboviruses) spread by Aedes mosquitoes are (re)emerging in many parts of the tropics, partially explained by changes in agricultural land-use. We explored the effects of land-use changes on the abundance, distribution, and host-seeking behavior of Aedes mosquitoes along a gradient of anthropogenic disturbance in oil palm-dominated landscapes in southeastern Côte d’Ivoire.MethodologyBetween January and December 2014, eggs, larvae, pupae, and adults of Aedes mosquitoes were sampled in four types of macrohabitats (rainforest, polyculture, oil palm monoculture, and rural housing areas), using standard procedures (bamboo-ovitraps, metallic-ovitraps, larval surveys, and human-baited double-net traps). Immature stages were reared and adult mosquitoes identified at species level.Principal findingsA total of 28,276 Aedes specimens belonging to 11 species were collected. No Aedes-positive microhabitat and only four specimens of Ae. aegypti were found in oil palm monoculture. The highest abundance of Aedes mosquitoes (60.9%) was found in polyculture, while the highest species richness (11 species) was observed in rainforest. Ae. aegypti was the predominant Aedes species, and exhibited high anthropophilic behavior inflicting 93.0% of total biting to humans. The biting rate of Aedes mosquitoes was 34.6 and 7.2-fold higher in polyculture and rural housing areas, respectively, compared to rainforest. Three species (Ae. aegypti, Ae. dendrophilus, and Ae. vittatus) bit humans in polyculture and rural housing areas, with respective biting rates of 21.48 and 4.48 females/person/day. Unexpectedly, all three species were also feeding during darkness. Aedes females showed bimodal daily feeding cycles with peaks at around 08:00 a.m. and 05:00 p.m. Host-seeking activities were interrupted between 11:00 a.m. and 02:00 p.m. in rural housing areas, while no such interruption was observed in polyculture. Some rainforest-dwelling Aedes species displayed little preference to feed on humans.ConclusionsIn southeastern Côte d’Ivoire, the agricultural land-use/land-cover changes due to the conversion of rainforest into oil palm monocultures influence the abundance, distribution, and host-seeking behaviors of anthropophagic and non-anthropophagic Aedes vectors. As a result, there is higher risk of humans to arbovirus transmission in polyculture and rural housing areas. There is a need for integrated vector management, including landscape epidemiology and ecotope-based vector control.
Highlights
Aedes mosquito-transmitted arthropod-borne viruses haveemerged from their sylvatic reservoirs of Africa and the Americas under landscape anthropization forces [1]
There is a need for integrated vector management, including landscape epidemiology and ecotope-based vector control
Several Aedes species act as vectors of arboviral diseases, such as yellow fever, dengue, chikungunya, Rift valley fever, and Zika that are of considerable public health relevance [1]
Summary
Aedes mosquito-transmitted arthropod-borne viruses (arboviruses) have (re)emerged from their sylvatic reservoirs of Africa and the Americas under landscape anthropization forces [1]. Several Aedes species act as vectors of arboviral diseases, such as yellow fever, dengue, chikungunya, Rift valley fever, and Zika that are of considerable public health relevance [1]. The resurgence of these mosquito-borne diseases and their geographic expansion has long been associated with human-induced modifications of terrestrial ecosystems [2]. Identifying priority areas for integrated vector management (IVM) is crucial for public health because the ecology (e.g., abundance distribution, and behavior) of Aedes mosquito vectors is likely to alter with human-induced land-use changes, including deforestation, intensification of agriculture, and urbanization [2,3,4]. We explored the effects of land-use changes on the abundance, distribution, and host-seeking behavior of Aedes mosquitoes along a gradient of anthropogenic disturbance in oil palm-dominated landscapes in southeastern Cote d’Ivoire
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