Ecological stoichiometry is the balance of chemical substances within animal bodies through interactions and processes within their ecosystem. Though relatively underexplored, it provides a wealth of information linking interactions across different levels of organization. Detritus is the base of the food web within the small aquatic ecosystems occupied by the mosquitoes Aedes albopictus and Aedes aegypti. Nutrient content of detritus varies, but it can have a negative effect on mosquito growth and survival if nutrient thresholds are not met. I investigated nutrient environments and species abundance in cemetery vases in New Orleans, LA to assess detrital heterogeneity and its effect on coexistence patterns between Aedes albopictus and Aedes aegypti. Vases were found to contain a wide array of detrital environments, but I did not find support to suggest that it affects mosquito coexistence patterns. Under a laboratory experiment I also investigated whether Aedes albopictus would show greater survivorship in lower nutrient environments compared to Aedes aegypti, and whether coexistence would occur in higher nutrient environments. This hypothesis was supported which showed Aedes aegypti stoichiometry and survival to be negatively affected within the lowest nutrient environments in the presence of Aedes albopictus, but in the highest nutrient environments both species showed high survival rates. My findings contribute to our understanding of the process that affects potential coexistence and exclusion for Ae. albopictus and Ae. aegypti.
","abstract_html":"<p>Ecological stoichiometry is the balance of chemical substances within animal bodies through interactions and processes within their ecosystem. Though relatively underexplored, it provides a wealth of information linking interactions across different levels of organization. Detritus is the base of the food web within the small aquatic ecosystems occupied by the mosquitoes <em>Aedes albopictus</em> and <em>Aedes aegypti</em>. Nutrient content of detritus varies, but it can have a negative effect on mosquito growth and survival if nutrient thresholds are not met. I investigated nutrient environments and species abundance in cemetery vases in New Orleans, LA to assess detrital heterogeneity and its effect on coexistence patterns between <em>Aedes albopictus</em> and <em>Aedes aegypti</em>. Vases were found to contain a wide array of detrital environments, but I did not find support to suggest that it affects mosquito coexistence patterns. Under a laboratory experiment I also investigated whether <em>Aedes albopictus</em> would show greater survivorship in lower nutrient environments compared to <em>Aedes aegypti</em>, and whether coexistence would occur in higher nutrient environments. This hypothesis was supported which showed <em>Aedes aegypti</em> stoichiometry and survival to be negatively affected within the lowest nutrient environments in the presence of <em>Aedes albopictus</em>, but in the highest nutrient environments both species showed high survival rates. My findings contribute to our understanding of the process that affects potential coexistence and exclusion for <em>Ae. albopictus</em> and <em>Ae. aegypti</em>.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Deerman, James"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Science (MS)","degree_level":"Masters Thesis","degree_discipline":null,"degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Donald A. Yee","Kevin A. Kuehn","Carl P. Qualls"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2018,"date_issued":"2018-12-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2018-12-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T05:44:50Z","subjects":["Detritus","Mosquito","Cemetery","Entomology"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://aquila.usm.edu/masters_theses/589","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Donald A. Yee","Kevin A. Kuehn","Carl P. Qualls"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Deerman, James"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2018-12-08T08:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Masters Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Science (MS)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Detritus","Mosquito","Cemetery","Entomology"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://aquila.usm.edu/masters_theses/589"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Ecological stoichiometry is the balance of chemical substances within animal bodies through interactions and processes within their ecosystem. Though relatively underexplored, it provides a wealth of information linking interactions across different levels of organization. Detritus is the base of the food web within the small aquatic ecosystems occupied by the mosquitoes Aedes albopictus and Aedes aegypti. Nutrient content of detritus varies, but it can have a negative effect on mosquito growth and survival if nutrient thresholds are not met. I investigated nutrient environments and species abundance in cemetery vases in New Orleans, LA to assess detrital heterogeneity and its effect on coexistence patterns between Aedes albopictus and Aedes aegypti. Vases were found to contain a wide array of detrital environments, but I did not find support to suggest that it affects mosquito coexistence patterns. Under a laboratory experiment I also investigated whether Aedes albopictus would show greater survivorship in lower nutrient environments compared to Aedes aegypti, and whether coexistence would occur in higher nutrient environments. This hypothesis was supported which showed Aedes aegypti stoichiometry and survival to be negatively affected within the lowest nutrient environments in the presence of Aedes albopictus, but in the highest nutrient environments both species showed high survival rates. My findings contribute to our understanding of the process that affects potential coexistence and exclusion for Ae. albopictus and Ae. aegypti.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Ecological Stoichiometry: What Role Does it Play in the Competition and Spatial Distribution Patterns of Aedes Albopictus and Aedes Aegypti?"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Donald A. Yee","Kevin A. Kuehn","Carl P. Qualls"],"dc:creator":["Deerman, James"],"dc:date.available":["2018-12-08T08:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["Ecological stoichiometry is the balance of chemical substances within animal bodies through interactions and processes within their ecosystem. Though relatively underexplored, it provides a wealth of information linking interactions across different levels of organization. Detritus is the base of the food web within the small aquatic ecosystems occupied by the mosquitoes Aedes albopictus and Aedes aegypti. Nutrient content of detritus varies, but it can have a negative effect on mosquito growth and survival if nutrient thresholds are not met. I investigated nutrient environments and species abundance in cemetery vases in New Orleans, LA to assess detrital heterogeneity and its effect on coexistence patterns between Aedes albopictus and Aedes aegypti. Vases were found to contain a wide array of detrital environments, but I did not find support to suggest that it affects mosquito coexistence patterns. Under a laboratory experiment I also investigated whether Aedes albopictus would show greater survivorship in lower nutrient environments compared to Aedes aegypti, and whether coexistence would occur in higher nutrient environments. This hypothesis was supported which showed Aedes aegypti stoichiometry and survival to be negatively affected within the lowest nutrient environments in the presence of Aedes albopictus, but in the highest nutrient environments both species showed high survival rates. My findings contribute to our understanding of the process that affects potential coexistence and exclusion for Ae. albopictus and Ae. aegypti.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://aquila.usm.edu/masters_theses/589"],"dc:subject":["Detritus","Mosquito","Cemetery","Entomology"],"dc:title":["Ecological Stoichiometry: What Role Does it Play in the Competition and Spatial Distribution Patterns of Aedes Albopictus and Aedes Aegypti?"],"thesis:degree_level":["Masters Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Science (MS)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T05:44:50Z"}