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First published online May 24, 2004
Journal of Experimental Biology 207, 2297-2304 (2004)
Published by The Company of Biologists 2004
doi: 10.1242/jeb.01021

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pH tolerances and regulatory abilities of freshwater and euryhaline Aedine mosquito larvae

Thomas M. Clark^1,*, Benjamin J. Flis¹ and Susanna K. Remold²

¹ Department of Biological Sciences, Indiana University, South Bend, IN 46634-1700 USA
² Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Osborn Memorial Laboratory, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520, USA

^* Author for correspondence (e-mail: tclark2{at}iusb.edu)

Accepted 7 April 2004

The pH regulatory abilities of two members of the mosquito tribe Aedini, known to have dramatically different saline tolerances, are investigated. The freshwater mosquito Aedes aegypti and the euryhaline Ochlerotatus taeniorhynchus tolerate very similar pH ranges. Both species complete larval development in waters ranging from pH 4 to pH 11, but naïve larvae always die in water of pH 3 or 12. Across the pH range 4–11, the hemolymph pH of O. taeniorhynchus is maintained constant while that of A. aegypti varies by 0.1 pH units. The salt composition of the water (3.5 g l^–1 sea salt, 3.5 g l^–1 NaCl, or nominally salt-free) has no effect on the range of pH tolerated by A. aegypti. In both species, the effects of pH on larval growth and development are minor in comparison with the influence of species and sex. Acclimation of A. aegypti to pH 4 or 11 increases survival times in pH 3 or 12, respectively, and allows a small percentage of larvae to pupate successfully at these extreme pH values. Such acclimation does not compromise survival at the other pH extreme.

Key words: mosquito larvae, pH regulation, pH acclimation, life history, Aedes aegypti, Ochlerotatus taeniorhynchus

This article has been cited by other articles:

				T. M. Clark, M. A. L. Vieira, K. L. Huegel, D. Flury, and M. Carper Strategies for regulation of hemolymph pH in acidic and alkaline water by the larval mosquito Aedes aegypti (L.) (Diptera; Culicidae) J. Exp. Biol., December 15, 2007; 210(24): 4359 - 4367. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				T. M. Clark, B. J. Flis, and S. K. Remold Differences in the effects of salinity on larval growth and developmental programs of a freshwater and a euryhaline mosquito species (Insecta: Diptera, Culicidae) J. Exp. Biol., June 1, 2004; 207(13): 2289 - 2295. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]