@article{fdi:010083313,
  title = {{L}arval sites of the mosquito {A}edes aegypti formosus in forest and domestic habitats in {A}frica and the potential association with oviposition evolution},
  author = {{X}ia, {S}. {Y}. and {D}weck, {H}. {K}. {M}. and {L}utomiah, {J}. and {S}ang, {R}. and {M}c{B}ride, {C}. {S}. and {R}ose, {N}. {H}. and {A}yala, {D}iego and {P}owell, {J}. {R}.},
  editor = {},
  language = {{ENG}},
  abstract = {{A}daptations to anthropogenic domestic habitats contribute to the success of the mosquito {A}edes aegypti as a major global vector of several arboviral diseases. {T}he species inhabited {A}frican forests before expanding into domestic habitats and spreading to other continents. {D}espite a well-studied evolutionary history, how this species initially moved into human settlements in {A}frica remains unclear. {D}uring this initial habitat transition, {A}frican {A}e. aegypti switched their larval sites from natural water containers like tree holes to artificial containers like clay pots. {L}ittle is known about how these natural versus artificial containers differ in their characteristics. {F}illing this knowledge gap could provide valuable information for studying the evolution of {A}e. aegypti associated with larval habitat changes. {A}s an initial effort, in this study, we characterized the microenvironments of {A}e. aegypti larval sites in forest and domestic habitats in two {A}frican localities: {L}a {L}ope, {G}abon, and {R}abai, {K}enya. {S}pecifically, we measured the physical characteristics, microbial density, bacterial composition, and volatile chemical profiles of multiple larval sites. {I}n both localities, comparisons between natural containers in the forests and artificial containers in the villages revealed significantly different microenvironments. {W}e next examined whether the between-habitat differences in larval site microenvironments lead to differences in oviposition, a key behavior affecting larval distribution. {F}orest {A}e. aegypti readily accepted the artificial containers we placed in the forests. {L}aboratory choice experiments also did not find distinct oviposition preferences between forest and village {A}e. aegypti colonies. {T}hese results suggested that {A}frican {A}e. aegypti are likely generalists in their larval site choices. {T}his flexibility to accept various containers with a wide range of physical, microbial, and chemical conditions might allow {A}e. aegypti to use human-stored water as fallback larval sites during dry seasons, which is hypothesized to have initiated the domestic evolution of {A}e. aegypti.},
  keywords = {{A}edes aegypti ; {A}frica ; forest and domestic habitat ; larval site ; microenvironment ; oviposition preference ; {GABON} ; {KENYA} ; {AFRIQUE} ; {ZONE} {EQUATORIALE} ; {LA} {LOPE} ; {RABAI}},
  booktitle = {},
  journal = {{E}cology and {E}volution},
  volume = {11},
  numero = {22},
  pages = {16327--16343},
  ISSN = {2045-7758},
  year = {2021},
  DOI = {10.1002/ece3.8332},
  URL = {https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010083313},
}