"Fearing the enemy": Growth and stress biomarker responses of sexually reversed Oreochromis niloticus in the presence of aquatic predatory insects.

Fishes can change their physiological responses when threatened by the presence of predators. Such physiological plasticity, however, usually implies costs that may impede organismal development and reproduction and reduce the ability to cope with other biotic and abiotic stresses. Here, we evaluated the growth and stress biomarker responses in sexually reversed Nile tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus, fingerlings indirectly threatened by the presence of the aquatic insect predator Belostoma anurum (Hemiptera: Belostomatidae).

Sublethal exposure to deltamethrin reduces the abilities of giant water bugs to prey upon Aedes aegypti larvae.

Freshwater ecosystems provide environmental conditions for many arthropod species, including pests like mosquitoes and beneficial insects. Giant water bugs, Belostoma anurum (Hemiptera: Belostomatidae), are aquatic insects that provide biological control of mosquitoes and small vertebrates in freshwater environments. However, the application of insecticides aiming to control mosquitoes can lead to insecticide exposures of aquatic predators that can result in their death or significant reductions in their behavioral abilities.