Abstract: Background & objectives: Lantana viburnoides sp viburnoides var kisi is used in Tanzania ethnobotanically to repel mosquitoes as well as in traditional medicine for stomach ache relief. Bioassay-guided fractionation and subtraction bioassays of the dichloromethane extract of the root barks were carried out in order to identify the bioactive components for controlling Anopheles gambiae s.s. mosquito larvae. Methods: Twenty late III or early IV instar larvae of An. gambiae s.s. were ...
Abstract: Anopheles gambiae Giles sensu stricto (Diptera: Culicidae) egg development and its relation to environmental parameters is an understudied aspect of vector biology. Although several studies have illustrated the dramatic effects of temperature on egg development, egg hatching dynamics remain unclear. The objective of this study was to expose An. gambiae eggs to various temperatures for different lengths of time and determine the impact on egg development and hatching count. Batches ...
Abstract: As a case study of how insects use masks as a defence against vision-guided predators, an experimental study was carried out using Acanthaspis petax, a reduviid bug (‘ant bug’) that covers itself with a ‘mask’, or ‘backpack’, made from carcasses of its preferred prey (ants), and three salticid spider species, Hyllus sp., Plexippus sp. and Thyene sp., salticids being predators with exceptionally acute vision. The ant bugs and the salticids were from the Lake Victoria reg...
Abstract: The global spread of vector-borne diseases remains a worrying public health threat, raising the need for development of new combat strategies for vector control. Knowledge of vector ecology can be exploited in this regard, including plant feeding; a critical resource that mosquitoes of both sexes rely on for survival and other metabolic processes. However, the identity of plant species mosquitoes feed on in nature remains largely unknown. By testing the hypothesis about selectivity...
Abstract: Novel approaches to area-wide control of vector species offer promise as additional tools in the fight against vectored diseases. Evaluation of transgenic insect strains aimed at field population control in disease-endemic countries may involve international partnerships and should be done in a stepwise approach, starting with studies in containment facilities. The preparations of both new-build and renovated facilities are described, includingworking with local and national regula...
Abstract: Some jumping spiders (family Salticidae) bear a striking resemblance to ants, a dangerous type of prey, both in terms of their appearance and in terms of how they move. Recent research has taken important steps toward determining whether predators categorize these spiders as ants on the basis of the way they move.
Abstract: This special issue was organised in the context of the 22nd meeting of the Association of African Insect Scientists (AAIS), in Wad Medani, Sudan in 2017. The aim was to ‘support impactful research that will yield genuine edible insects products and sustain value chains that enhance food and nutritional security and support sustained livelihoods in Africa’. The issue is composed of contributions from the following countries: Kenya, Uganda, Burundi, Nigeria,Mali, Burkina Faso, Ca...
Abstract: Myrmarachne assimilis, an ant-like (myrmecomorphic) jumping spider (Araneae, Salticidae) from the Philippines, is a Batesian mimic of Oecophylla smaragdina, the Asian weaver ant. Salticids are well known for their acute eyesight and the elaborate vision-based display behaviour they adopt during encounters with conspecific individuals, but most salticids are not myrmecomorphic. Despite its unusual morphology, M. assimilis adopts display behaviour during intraspecific interactions th...
Abstract: Background: Malaria is highly sensitive to climatic variables and is strongly infuenced by the presence of vectors in a region that further contribute to parasite development and sustained disease transmission. Mathematical analysis of malaria transmission through the use and application of the value of the basic reproduction number (R0) threshold is an important and useful tool for the understanding of disease patterns. Methods: Temperature dependence aspect of R0 obtained from dy...
Abstract: Climate change and land degradation adversely affect food security in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Smallholder farmers are the most affected. Therefore, it is imperative to identify technologies that boost resilience to climate change, and restore lands. Push-pull technology is among proposed solutions. This technology controls stem borers, fall armyworm, striga, mycotoxins; improves availability of nitrogen and phosphorus, and stores increased carbon in biomass and soils. Though much...
Abstract: This Special Issue presents the outcomes from the 23rd African Association of Insect Scientists' Conference held in Cote D’Ivoire, in connection with similar initiatives within and outside Africa. Over 65 scientific papers from several countries, worldwide, were submitted, of which about 40 were accepted and published. The issue focused on new advances in the value chain of edible insects in Africa and beyond. An innovative light-emitting diode technology for mass harvesting of e...
Abstract: Background: In a recent study using DNA barcoding, we identifed the plants fed upon by four Afro-tropical mos quito species that vector dengue, malaria, and Rift Valley fever. Herein, we have expanded on this study by investi gating the role of three of the plants, Pithecellobium dulce (Fabaceae), Leonotis nepetifolia (Lamiaceae), and Opuntia fcus-indica (Cactaceae), on the survival, fecundity, and egg viability of the dengue vector Aedes aegypti. Methods: We tested these efects us...
Abstract: Specialist predators are innately and distinctively proficient at targeting specific prey types. This is enabled by behavioural, perceptual and cognitive mechanisms that can only be understood using carefully designed experiments. Evarcha culicivora is an East African jumping spider that feeds on vertebrate blood acquired indirectly by actively targeting blood-carrying female mosquitoes as preferred prey. Here we asked whether these spiders use the colour red to identify this prey....
Abstract: Novel malaria vector control strategies targeting the odour-orientation of mosquitoes during host-seeking, such as ‘attract-and-kill’ or ‘push-and-pull’, have been suggested as complementary tools to indoor residual spraying and long-lasting insecticidal nets. These would be particularly beneficial if they can target vectors in the peri-domestic space where people are unprotected by traditional interventions. A randomized double-blind placebo-control study was implemented i...
Abstract: Background Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) light traps are widely used for sampling mosquitoes. However, this trap, manufactured in the USA, poses challenges for use in sub-Saharan Africa due to procurement costs and shipping time. Traps that are equally efficient than the CDC light trap, but which are amenable for use in remote African settings and made in Africa, are desirable to improve local vector surveillance. This study evaluated a novel solar-powered light ...