Observations on the biology of Octomyomermis muspratti, a nematode parasite of mosquitoes |
| |
Authors: | JJ Petersen |
| |
Institution: | Gulf Coast Mosquito Research, Agriculture Research, Science and Education Administration, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Lake Charles, Louisiana 70601 USA |
| |
Abstract: | The mosquito parasite Octomyomermis muspratti was able to infect mosquitoes in diluted sea water with conductivity readings of 4000 μmho/cm and in all dilutions of organically rich tree-hole water. In contrast, the infectivity of Romanomermis culicivorax, a more extensively studied species, was adversely affected in dilutions of sea water with conductivity of 1500 μmho/cm and no infections were observed at concentrations above 3000 μmho/cm. Also, R. culicivorax failed to infect hosts at any dilution of the tree-hole water. Diet was shown to have an effect on male-female sex ratios in developing O. muspratti, and this may be employed to enhance a better male-female ratio in laboratory cultures of this nematode. When cultures of O. muspratti were flooded every 3–4 months, they continued to produce infective-stage nematodes for up to 5 years. Also, cultures that were repeatedly flooded produced infective nematodes for more than 39 floodings. |
| |
Keywords: | Octomyomermis muspratti Culex pipiens mermithid nematode tree-hole water nematode culture of |
本文献已被 ScienceDirect 等数据库收录! |
|