Background: Aedes koreicus was detected in northern Italy for the first time in 2011, and it is now well established in several areas as a new invasive mosquito species. Data regarding the influence of temperature on mosquito survival and development are not available yet for this species.
Methods: We experimentally investigated the influence of different constant rearing temperatures (between 4 and 33 °C) on the survival rates and developmental times of different life stages of Ae. koreicus under laboratory conditions. The resulting data were subsequently used to inform a mathematical model reproducing the Ae. koreicus life-cycle calibrated to counts of adult females captured in the field in the autonomous province of Trento (northern Italy) between 2016 and 2018.
Results: We found that temperatures above 28 °C are not optimal for the survival of pupae and adults, whereas temperate conditions of 23-28 °C seem to be very favorable, explaining the recent success of Ae. koreicus at establishing into new specific areas. Our results indicate that Ae. koreicus is less adapted to local climatic conditions compared to Ae. albopictus, another invasive species which has been invading the area for the last three decades. Warmer seasons, which are more likely to occur in the future because of climate change, might extend the breeding time and therefore increase the abundance of Ae. koreicus in the study region.
Conclusions: Our findings provide, to our knowledge, the first evidence on how temperature influences the bionomics and dynamics of Ae. koreicus and highlight the need for further studies on the phenology of this species in temperate areas of Europe.
Keywords: Invasive species; Mathematical model; Mosquito bionomics; Mosquito dynamics; Vector abundance.