Effects of photoperiod on competition between container-dwelling mosquitoes

The invasive Asian tiger mosquito, Aedes albopictus has displaced many native populations in the United States, often due to its superior competitive abilities. Since photoperiod causes life history shifts in A. albopictus, we wished to determine its effects on the interactions of A. albopictus with other species. We experimentally investigated the effect of photoperiod on interspecific competition between A. albopictus and Aedes aegypti, the yellow fever mosquito.  There were three competition treatments: 40 A. albopictus larvae, 40 A. aegypti larvae or 20:20 A. albopictus: A. aegypti larvae; each crossed with one of three different photoperiod treatments (light:dark): short day (9:15), control (12:12), and long day (15:9). We measured larval development time, adult size, and survival across all treatment combinations.  We compared the effects of intra-vs. interspecific competition and determine if the outcome is condition-specific to photoperiod treatments.