Vital Statistics of Triatominae (Hemiptera: Reduviidae) Under Laboratory Conditions: IV.Panstrongylus geniculatus

JORGE RABINOVICH; DORA FELICIANGELI

JOURNAL OF MEDICAL ENTOMOLOGY

ENTOMOLOGICAL SOC AMER

Lugar: Lanham; Año: 2015 vol. 52 p. 797 - 805

0022-2585

A cohort of 100 eggs ofPanstrongylus geniculatus(Latreille) was reared in the laboratoryunder constant conditions (temperature 2661C, 60610% RH), with mortality and fecundity data recorded weekly. We calculated stage-specific development times, age-specific mortality and fecundity(18.4 eggs///wk), and stage-specific and total preadult mortality (31.6%), and the weekly intrinsic rate ofnatural increase (ro¼0.096), the finite population growth rate (k¼1.109), the net reproductive rate(R0¼60.45), and the generation time (T¼46.34 wk). Elasticity analysis showed that the dominant lifehistory trait determiningkwas survival (particularly the adult female?s survival). Adult females dominated the stage-specific reproductive value, and the egg stage dominated the stable stage distribution(SSD). The damping ratio (q¼1.096) suggests a relatively rapid period of recovery to a disturbed SSD.Results were compared with one previous study and conform relatively well, considering that environmental conditions were not the same. We estimated the colonizing ability ofP. geniculatus, using as acriterion thero/bindex, and obtained the value of 0.74, an indicator of a good colonizer, and similar towell-known invasive species such asRhodnius prolixusandTriatoma infestans. The life history traits anddemographic parameters here presented forP. geniculatusare discussed in terms of their usefulness forevolutionary studies and vector control activities.