Sugar prevalence in Aedes albopictus differs by habitat, sex and time of day on Masig Island, Torres Strait, Australia

Background: Sugar feeding is a fundamental behaviour of many mosquito species. For Aedes albopictus, an important vector of dengue virus and chikungunya virus, little is known about its sugar-feeding behaviour, and no studies have been conducted on this in the southern hemisphere. This knowledge is pivotal for determining the potential of attractive targeted sugar baits (ATSBs) to control this important vector. Methods: The prevalence of sugar was assessed in 1808 Ae. albopictus from Masig Island, Torres Strait, Australia collected between 13 and 25 March 2020. Fructose presence and content in field-collected Ae. albopictus were quantified using the cold anthrone assay. Results: Significantly more male (35.8%) than female (28.4%) Ae. albopictus were sugar fed. There was a significant interaction between sex and time of day on the probability of capturing sugar-fed Ae. albopictus. For both sexes, fructose prevalence and content were higher in mosquitoes caught in the morning than in the afternoon. Female Ae. albopictus collected in the residential habitat were significantly more likely to be sugar fed than those collected in the woodland habitat. Conclusions: These findings provide baseline information about the sugar-feeding patterns of Ae. albopictus and provide essential information to enable an assessment of the potential of ATSBs for vector suppression and control on Masig Island, with relevance to other locations where this species occurs

Tecomanthe burungu (Bignoniaceae), a new species from northern Queensland

The new species, Tecomanthe burungu Zich & A.J.Ford (Bignoniaceae) from the Wet Tropics bioregion of north-eastern Queensland is described, illustrated and differentiated from similar and closely related taxa

Measurement of single-diffractive dijet production in proton–proton collisions at √s=8Te with the CMS and TOTEM experiments

Measurements are presented of the single-diffractive dijet cross section and the diffractive cross section as a function of the proton fractional momentum loss ξ and the four-momentum transfer squared t. Both processes pp→pX and pp→Xp, i.e. with the proton scattering to either side of the interaction point, are measured, where X includes at least two jets; the results of the two processes are averaged. The analyses are based on data collected simultaneously with the CMS and TOTEM detectors at the LHC in proton–proton collisions at s=8Te during a dedicated run with β∗=90m at low instantaneous luminosity and correspond to an integrated luminosity of 37.5nb-1. The single-diffractive dijet cross section σjjpX, in the kinematic region ξ< 0.1 , 0.03<|t|<1Ge2, with at least two jets with transverse momentum pT>40Ge, and pseudorapidity | η| < 4.4 , is 21.7±0.9(stat)-3.3+3.0(syst)±0.9(lumi)nb. The ratio of the single-diffractive to inclusive dijet yields, normalised per unit of ξ, is presented as a function of x, the longitudinal momentum fraction of the proton carried by the struck parton. The ratio in the kinematic region defined above, for x values in the range - 2.9 ≤ log 10x≤ - 1.6 , is R=(σjjpX/Δξ)/σjj=0.025±0.001(stat)±0.003(syst), where σjjpX and σjj are the single-diffractive and inclusive dijet cross sections, respectively. The results are compared with predictions from models of diffractive and nondiffractive interactions. Monte Carlo predictions based on the HERA diffractive parton distribution functions agree well with the data when corrected for the effect of soft rescattering between the spectator partons. © 2020, CERN for the benefit of the CMS and TOTEM collaborations