scholarly journals Relationship between body size of adult Anopheles gambiae s.l. and infection with the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum

Parasitology ◽  
1992 ◽  
Vol 104 (2) ◽  
pp. 233-237 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. O. Lyimo ◽  
J. C. Koella
Keyword(s):  
Plasmodium Falciparum ◽  
Body Size ◽  
Survival Rate ◽  
Anopheles Gambiae ◽  
High Survival ◽  
High Survival Rate ◽  
Female Body Size ◽  
Parasite Plasmodium ◽  
Parasite Plasmodium Falciparum ◽  
Anopheles Gambiae S.L

SUMMARYThe influence of adult female body size of Anopheles gambiae s.l. on development of midgut and salivary gland infections by the parasite Plasmodium falciparum was investigated in a field study carried out in Tanzania. The proportion of mosquitoes infected during a blood meal was independent of size. However, the number of oocysts harboured by infected mosquitoes increased with size of the mosquito. The proportion of mosquitoes with sporozoites, and thus potentially infective to humans, was highest in intermediate-sized mosquitoes, whereas the largest and smallest mosquitoes were less likely to have sporozoites. This pattern is interpreted as a combination of high survival rate of large, uninfected mosquitoes and of low survival rate of mosquitoes infected with many oocysts.

scholarly journals Survival and longevity in neotropical damselflies (Odonata, Polythoridae)

2019 ◽  
pp. 293-300 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Cordero–Rivera ◽  
I. Sanmartín–Villar ◽  
M. Sánchez Herrera ◽  
A. Rivas–Torres ◽  
A. C. Encalada
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
Survival Rate ◽  
Tropical Forests ◽  
High Survival ◽  
High Survival Rate ◽  
Daily Survival Rate ◽  
Maximum Lifespan ◽  
Population Densities ◽  
Tropical Regions ◽  
Reproductive Activities

Longevity among insect orders varies greatly, and has mainly been studied in insects in temperate biomes, where seasonality determines high synchronization of reproductive activities and limits lifespan. Most forest damselflies in tropical regions have low population densities and are almost never observed in copula. We hypothesized that selection will favour a high survival rate and hence high lifespan, allowing the animals to be ready for the occasional events that favour reproduction. We studied two neotropical damselflies, Polythore mutata and P. derivata, in Ecuador, using mark–recapture methods. We found that sex affected the rate of recapture, but daily survival rate was affected by sex only in one population. We found evidence that suggests stabilizing or directional selection on body size. The maximum lifespan was 54–63 days. We conclude that the survival rate of Polythore damselflies in tropical forests is comparable to that of similar damselflies in temperate zones.

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