Table 2.

Eleven Insect Quality and Insectary Operating Indicators for Contained Transgenic Mosquito Colonies

		Metrics/Implications
Insect quality indicators
Life table parameter	Egg count	Eggs produced per female pupa (sexed and counted in previous generation); a key driver of productivity of the colony
	Egg hatch proportion	Egg survival to larvae; a first sign of quality problems
	Transgenic proportion in the larval screen	Comparison with expected genetic ratio; measures genetic stability or drift
	Development duration from egg hatch to pupation	Aquatic stage development in days; main predictor of batch production rate
	Pupal sex and trait ratio	Ratio of sexes and trait expression in newly emerged pupae; gives signs of sex-linked biases and differential mortality from pathogens
	Pupal eclosion rate	Proportion of pupae emerging after 3 days; may indicate infection or contamination
Physical condition	Wing length	Distance between main alula and wing vein tip; an index of body size that may reflect physical mating compatibility and generally reflects nutrition
Selection pressure	Insecticide resistance	Mortality proportion against a standard dose; reflects selection pressures
Insectary operating indicators
Insectary environment	Temperature	Confirmation of rearing or study protocol
	Humidity	Confirmation of rearing or study protocol
	Lighting	Confirmation of rearing or study protocol