Effective population size of malaria mosquitoes: large impact of vector control

Malaria vectors in sub-Saharan Africa have proven themselves very difficult adversaries in the global struggle against malaria. Decades of anti-vector interventions have yielded mixed results – with successful reductions in transmission in some areas, and limited impacts in others. These varying successes can be ascribed to a lack of universally effective vector control tools, as well as the development of insecticide resistance in mosquito populations. Understanding the impact of vector control on mosquito populations is crucial for planning new interventions and evaluating existing ones. However, estimates of population size changes in response to control efforts are often inaccurate because of limitations and biases in collection methods. Attempts to evaluate the impact of vector control on mosquito effective population size (Ne) have produced inconclusive results thus far. Therefore, we obtained data for 13-15 microsatellite markers for over 1,500 mosquitoes representing multiple ti...