Laboratory colonization of Aedes japonicus japonicus.

We describe methodology used for the laboratory colonization of Aedes japonicus japonicus, an exotic mosquito species native to eastern Asia and first collected in New Jersey as larvae in 1999. We created a free mating colony in 2000 that readily bloodfed on restrained bobwhite quail (Colinus virginianus). A larval diet of finely ground Purina Lab Diet dissolved in dechlorinated water has proven acceptable. This is the first report of Ae. j. japonicus colonization from mosquitoes collected in the United States.

Finding needles in the haystack: single copy microsatellite loci for Aedes japonicus (Diptera: Culicidae).

First identified in three North American states in 1998, Aedes japonicus japonicus, the Asian bush mosquito, has since spread to 21 states, plus Ontario in Canada, northern France, and Belgium. Analyses of the introduction and expansion of this potentially deadly disease vector will be radically improved by including powerful genetic markers like microsatellites. Useful microsatellite loci have, however, been difficult to identify for mosquitoes in the genus Aedes because of the high amount of repetitive DNA in these species. We isolated single-copy DNA from Ae. j. japonicus and then used a standard enrichment method to identify regions containing microsatellites. Here we describe seven polymorphic microsatellite loci that were tested in American populations of Ae. j. japonicus. These loci were also found to be polymorphic in two other of the four Ae. japonicus subspecies and in Aedes koreicus.

Detection of West Nile viral RNA from an overwintering pool of Culex pipens pipiens (Diptera: Culicidae) in New Jersey, 2003.

In total, 1,324 Culex pipiens pipiens L. female mosquitoes were collected at Ft. Hancock, Monmouth County, New Jersey, from January to March 2001-2003. Mosquitoes were held in an insectary at 27 degrees C and a photoperiod of 16:8 (L:D) h for 6 to 21 d after which they were tested in 34 pools. West Nile viral RNA was detected in one pool by a TaqMan reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction assay; however, infectious virus could not be isolated using either Vero cell plaque assay or C6/36 mosquito cells. Twenty females dissected in January and March 2003 confirmed ovarian diapause status. We suggest that the mode of infection in this pool of overwintering females may have been due to vertical (transgenerational) transmission.

Detection of West Nile virus RNA from the louse fly Icosta americana (Diptera: Hippoboscidae).

West Nile virus (WNV) was detected by Taqman reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction in 4 of 85 (4.7%) blood-engorged (n = 2) and unengorged (n = 2) Icosta americana (Leach) hippoboscid flies that were collected from wild raptors submitted to a wildlife rehabilitation center in Mercer County, NJ, in 2003. This report represents an additional detection of WNV in a nonculicine arthropod in North America and the first documented detection of the virus in unengorged hippoboscid flies, further suggesting a possible role that this species may play in the transmission of WNV in North America.

A classification system for mosquito life cycles: life cycle types for mosquitoes of the northeastern United States.

A system for the classification of mosquito life cycle types is presented for mosquito species found in the northeastern United States. Primary subdivisions include Univoltine Aedine, Multivoltine Aedine, Multivoltine Culex/Anopheles, and Unique Life Cycle Types. A montotypic subdivision groups life cycle types restricted to single species. The classification system recognizes 11 shared life cycle types and three that are limited to single species. Criteria for assignments include: 1) where the eggs are laid, 2) typical larval habitat, 3) number of generations per year, and 4) stage of the life cycle that overwinters. The 14 types in the northeast have been named for common model species. A list of species for each life cycle type is provided to serve as a teaching aid for students of mosquito biology.

Expanded polystyrene (EPS) floats for surveillance of Ochlerotatus japonicus.

Blocks of expanded polystyrene (EPS) were placed in a variety of habitats to investigate their potential as an egg-collection device for container-dwelling Aedes and Ochlerotatus species. Eggs from Ochlerotatus japonicus, Oc. triseriatus, Oc. hendersoni, and Aedes albopictus were collected with EPS floats. The float provides an inexpensive, low-maintenance alternative to the Centers for Disease Control ovitrap for sampling container-dwelling mosquito species that are important vectors of disease. Eggs collected on the floats have many potential applications, including use in routine population surveillance; detection of Oc. japonicus, Ae. albopictus, and other container-dwelling species in new areas; species distribution studies; natural transovarial transmission studies; ovipositional studies; collection of local field populations for insecticide resistance assays; assessment of adulticiding efficacy; and establishment of new laboratory colonies.

The structure and function of the larval siphon and spiracular apparatus of Coquillettidia perturbans.

The structure of the larval siphon and spiracular apparatus of Coquillettidia perturbans and the mechanism of attachment to roots of emergent aquatic macrophytes were examined by utilizing dissection and scanning electron microscopy. The roots of these plants contain large air-filled aerenchyma channels that larvae of Cq. perturbans pierce with their specialized siphon and spiracular apparatus to breathe. The siphon contains the spiracular apparatus, comprising the saw, postabdominal spiracles, inner spiracular teeth, and the spiracular apodeme. These are the primary structures that are utilized by larvae to pierce root tissue. Once entry is made into a root, the outer spiracular teeth open fully, anchoring the larva in place.