An Agent-Based Model for Aedes aegypti Population Dynamics with Spatial Heterogeneity

This work presents an agent-based model to study the population dynamics of the mosquito Aedes aegypti in spatially heterogeneous environments. The model represents individuals evolving on a discrete spatial lattice and considers five biological states: juveniles, adult males, unmated females, gravid females, and dead individuals. Breeding sites are defined as a subset of the spatial domain where larval development occurs, incorporating density-dependent competition and stochastic processes for birth, maturation, and mortality. Local interactions within finite spatial radii determine mating encounters and oviposition events, while adult movement is modeled as stochastic lattice jumps influenced by a spatial potential field that attracts mosquitoes toward breeding sites. This framework produces dynamics consistent with reaction–diffusion models and enables the analysis of how breeding site distribution and urban spatial structure influence mosquito populations. Additionally, the model can generate synthetic in silico data useful for parameter calibration and for integration with hybrid data-driven approaches aimed at studying and controlling mosquito populations.