Predation-dependent oviposition habitat selection by the mosquito Culiseta longiareolata: a test of competing hypotheses
We investigated the mechanism underlying oviposition habitat selection (OHS) in the mosquito Culiseta longiareolata. The putative outcome of a trade‐off between the risk of predation and detrimental density dependence, OHS in this species presents an opportunity to test two competing alternatives: (...
Saved in:
Published in | Ecology letters Vol. 6; no. 1; pp. 35 - 40 |
---|---|
Main Authors | , , |
Format | Journal Article |
Language | English |
Published |
Oxford, UK
Blackwell Science Ltd
01.01.2003
|
Subjects | |
Online Access | Get full text |
Cover
Loading…
Summary: | We investigated the mechanism underlying oviposition habitat selection (OHS) in the mosquito Culiseta longiareolata. The putative outcome of a trade‐off between the risk of predation and detrimental density dependence, OHS in this species presents an opportunity to test two competing alternatives: (1) a polymorphic scenario, in which a fixed proportion of females constantly avoid ‘predator pools’, while the remainder oviposits at random; and (2) a monomorphic scenario, in which all females oviposit in predator pools with a certain probability. We present a conceptual framework that demonstrates how a simple experimental design – whereby predator incidence in artificial pools is alternated between 0.25 and 0.75 – can distinguish between, or refute, the two scenarios. Given the proportional use, by ovipositing females, of predator‐free pools observed under each treatment, and a bootstrap estimate of the ratio of daily oviposition rates, we find the monomorphic scenario twice as likely as the polymorphic. |
---|---|
Bibliography: | ArticleID:ELE385 istex:2F1E9852A7B2EAD74C41DD882490DC43C427151C ark:/67375/WNG-5R5D12J9-H ObjectType-Article-2 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-1 content type line 23 |
ISSN: | 1461-023X 1461-0248 |
DOI: | 10.1046/j.1461-0248.2003.00385.x |