Diversity Cascades and Malaria Vectors

The interactions between predator diversity and primary consumer abundance can include direct effects and indirect, cascading effects. Understanding these effects on immature Anopheles mosquitoes is important in sub-Saharan Africa, where most cases of malaria occur. Aquatic predators and immature mosquitoes were collected from shallow pools of varying age previously excavated by brickmakers in the western highlands of Kenya. Path analysis showed an indirect negative effect of habitat age on An. gambiae (Giles, 1902) mediated by effects on predator diversity. Disturbance resets habitats to an earlier successional stage, diminishing predator diversity and increasing An. gambiae populations. The increase in vector abundance as a result of reduced predator diversity highlights the public health value in conserving native insect diversity.