2022 Early Hearing Detection & Intervention Virtual Conference

March 13 - 15, 2022

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5/24/2021 | 2:00 PM - 3:30 PM | TESTING THE EFFICIENCY OF NATIVE AND NON-NATIVE FISH SPECIES IN CONTROLLING MOSQUITOS | Virtual Platform

TESTING THE EFFICIENCY OF NATIVE AND NON-NATIVE FISH SPECIES IN CONTROLLING MOSQUITOS

Guppies (Poecilia reticulata) have been introduced worldwide mainly for biological control of mosquito-borne diseases but there is no consensus about their efficiency for this purpose. Here, we tested the efficiency of guppies and two native Brazilian poeciliids (Poecilia vivipara and Phalloceros harpagos) to feed on mosquito larvae. We introduced fish from wild populations into 20 flowerpots (12L each) in four experimental treatment blocks. Each flowerpot was randomly assigned no-fish (control), four individuals of P. reticulata, four individuals of P. vivipara, or four individuals of P. harpagos. Three hours after introduction, we retrieved the fish for gut content analysis and estimated the insect larvae remaining in each flowerpot. All three species consumed similar (F=2.316; p=0.149) low proportions of mosquito larvae (P. reticulata=12.5%; P. harpagos=8.33% and P. vivipara=34.37%). Although there were few mosquitos in their guts, we observed a reduction in the mosquito larvae remaining in the flowerpots with fish when compared to no-fish treatments (F=14.59, p<0.001). Our data suggest that presence of fish can reduce the abundance of mosquito larvae, regardless of fish species. As such, there is no a priori reason for using invasive, such as guppies for mosquito control.

Species interactions
Stream
Tropical

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Presenters/Authors

Luisa Manna (), Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro , luisamanna@gmail.com;