RT Journal Article
T1 House sparrow uropygial gland secretions do not attract ornithophilic nor mammophilic mosquitoes
A1 Díez Fernández, Alazne
A1 Martínez De la Puente, Josué
A1 Gangoso De La Colina, Laura Esther
A1 Ferraguti, Martina
A1 Soriguer, Ramón
A1 Figuerola, Jordi
AB Mosquito feeding preferences determine host–vector contact rates and represent a key factor in the transmission of vector-borne pathogens. The semiochemical compounds of which vertebrate odours are composed probably play a role in mosquito host choice. Birds spread secretions from uropygial gland over their feathers to protect their plumage, comprising behaviour that may in turn affect odour profiles. Although uropygial secretions are expected to modify the attractiveness of birds to mosquitoes, contradictory findings have been reported. Mosquito species differ in their feeding preferences, with some species feeding mainly on birds (ornithophilic species) and others on mammals (mammophilic species). Consequently, it is possible that ornithophilic and mammophilic species differ in their response to uropygial gland secretions. Using a dual-choice olfactometer, the present study tests this hypothesis by comparing the behavioural response to uropygial gland secretions from juvenile male and female house sparrows (Passer domesticus) in the ornithophilic Culex pipiens and the mammophilic Aedes (Ochlerotatus) caspius mosquitoes. No differences were found in the response of either mosquito species to the uropygial gland secretions. Therefore, the preference of ornithophilic mosquitoes for avian hosts is apparently not explained by a greater attraction of mosquitoes to the uropygial gland secretion odour when presented in combination with a CO2-enriched airflow.
PB Wiley / The Royal Entomological Society
SN 0269-283X
YR 2019
FD 2019
LK https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/110973
UL https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/110973
LA eng
NO Díez-Fernández, A., Martínez-de la Puente, J., Gangoso, L., Ferraguti, M., Soriguer, R. and Figuerola, J. (2020), House sparrow uropygial gland secretions do not attract ornithophilic nor mammophilic mosquitoes. Med Vet Entomol, 34: 225-228. https://doi.org/10.1111/mve.12401
NO The present study was funded by project P11-RNM-7038 from the Junta de Andalucía and project CGL2015-65055-P from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation and European Regional Development Fund (FEDER). ADF was supported by Severo-Ochoa grant from the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (SVP-2014-068571). JMP was partially supported by a 2017 Leonardo Grant for Researchers and Cultural Creators, BBVA Foundation. The Foundation accepts no responsibility for the opinions, statements and contents included in the project and/or the results thereof, which are entirely the responsibility of the authors. LG was supported by a Marie Sklodowska-Curie Fellowship from the European Commission (grant number 747729, ‘EcoEvoClim’). MF was supported by a FPU grant (AP2012-0568).
NO Junta de Andalucía
NO Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (España)
NO European Commission
NO Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (España)
NO Fundación BBVA
DS Docta Complutense
RD 8 abr 2025