Movement of dengue vectors between the human modified environment and an urban forest in Rio de Janeiro

The movement of Aedes aegypti (L.) and Aedes albopictus (Skuse) females between sylvatic and urban environments was investigated by marking, releasing, and recapturing adults and by identifying rubidium (Rb)-marked eggs of females that were released after taking a bloodmeal containing RbCI. When released in the forest, Ae. albopictus females flew as far as 1000 m and reached houses within 1 wk. When Ae. albopictus were released close to houses, most females were recaptured near the release point, and Rb-marked eggs were found 1000 m away in the forest only once, 35 d after the release. These differing patterns of movement may suggest a preference of Ae. albopictus for the human-modified environment. Ae. aegypti, however, showed low tendency to disperse into the forest. The capacity of Ae. albopictus females to disperse from a sylvatic into a human-modified environment suggests that this species may play a role in the dissemination of forest-restricted pathogens, such as yellow fever virus.