PNAS nexus. 2022.

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1093/pnasnexus/pgac041

Aedes albopictus and Ae. aegypti are highly-invasive mosquitoes and important vectors of arboviruses that cause disease in humans, which make them major public health threats. Both species have sympatric and allopatric populations and appear to be in competition where they overlap with Ae. albopictus often displacing Ae. aegypti. We show that there is sex-based, asymmetric interspecific mating between the two species in China that is characterized by stronger interspecific mating of male Ae. albopictus and higher intraspecific re-mating by female Ae. albopictus that may drive Ae. albopictus displacement of Ae. aegypti during its range expansion. These findings confirm and extend previous studies on interspecific competition between the two species and could benefit novel mosquito control methods and prevent mosquito-borne diseases.