Abstract
The continuing spread of the Asian tiger mosquito Aedes albopictus, a vector of many arboviruses and some dirofilarial worms, in Europe calls for advanced investigations on its ecological ability to establish and overwinter in temperate, more northern geographic regions. To meet this purpose, eggs of Ae. albopictus laboratory strains of tropical, subtropical and temperate origin were exposed to field conditions during one or two winter seasons in northeastern Germany. After 1 to 16 weeks of outdoor exposure, eggs were flooded in the laboratory, and the hatching rates were determined. During the winter season 2015/2016, when temperatures reached –10°C, the subtropical strain showed hatching after all time periods while the tropical strain displayed hatching only until two weeks of cold exposure. In the winter season 2016/2017, with temperatures as low as ‒6°C, all three strains produced hatching larvae after all time periods. Both the hatching rates and the hatching behaviour differed between the strains. Larvae of the subtropical and temperate strains hatched in installments over a period of four weeks while the larvae of the tropical strain hatched within a short time period, often one week. The results of the study demonstrate that Ae. albopictus strains of different, even tropical, origin might be able to survive a central European winter, although this is likely to depend on the specific course of the temperatures. Further studies with different temperature regimes and different mosquito strains are needed to specify these findings.
Highlights
Aedes albopictus (Skuse, 1894), commonly known as the Asian tiger mosquito, is a relatively thermophilic mosquito species with an Asian-Pacific origin [1]
The present study aims to add further experimental evidence to elucidate the cold tolerance of Ae. albopictus and its ability to overwinter in central Europe under field conditions
The 2015/2016 experiment started at temperatures of 11 ̊C (16 December 2015, subtropical strain) and –2 ̊C (13 January 2016, tropical strain), respectively, as measured by the data logger in the secondary container
Summary
Aedes albopictus (Skuse, 1894), commonly known as the Asian tiger mosquito, is a relatively thermophilic mosquito species with an Asian-Pacific origin [1]. In Europe, it was found for the first time in Albania in 1979 [7], but only spread over the Mediterranean after additional introductions to Italy a decade later [8]. It is established in at least 19 European countries [6]. The international trade with used tyres and lucky bamboo has played a major role in its global displacement [7, 9, 10]
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