Mosquito-flower power: Determining how nectar contents can influence mosquito vectors

Mosquito interactions with humans are well documented with known broader public health impacts, however the ecological consequences of their interactions with flowers are a less understood topic. Processes like pollination, microbial exchange, and some impacts of nectar consumption are all things that are yet to be well characterized in the literature and could help us better understand mosquito ecology as a whole. In addition to female mosquitoes of certain species requiring nutrients in blood to produce their eggs, both male and female mosquitoes feed on plant sugar such as nectar to fulfill their energy demands. Although the sugar in flower nectar is the main constituent they consume, other components are taken up, for which we have limited knowledge of their physiological impact. The uptake of nectar components such as secondary metabolites and heavy metal contaminants is particularly interesting because their impact on mosquitoes is relatively understudied compared to the impact of plant sugars. To begin this investigation, we documented specific interactions between mosquito and plant species using molecular barcoding on pollen grains caught on the body and antennae of mosquitoes. This evidence of mosquito-flower visitation was generated from local samples trapped at the Savannah River Site near Aiken, South Carolina and using samples from Yucatán, Mexico. With this data, we have identified target flowers from which we will collect plant fluids, and analyze different components to assess their impact on mosquito life history traits.