Assessment of ICount software, a precise and fast egg counting tool for the mosquito vector Aedes aegypti

BACKGROUND: Widespread in the tropics, the mosquito Aedes aegypti is an important vector of many viruses, posing a significant threat to human health. Vector monitoring often requires fecundity estimation by counting eggs laid by female mosquitoes. Traditionally, manual data analyses have been used but this requires a lot of effort and is the methods are prone to errors. An easy tool to assess the number of eggs laid would facilitate experimentation and vector control operations. RESULTS: This study introduces a built-in software called ICount allowing automatic egg counting of the mosquito vector, Aedes aegypti. ICount egg estimation compared to manual counting is statistically equivalent, making the software effective for automatic and semi-automatic data analysis. This technique also allows rapid analysis compared to manual methods. Finally, the software has been used to assess p-cresol oviposition choices under laboratory conditions in order to test the system with different egg densities. CONCLUSIONS: ICount is a powerful tool for fast and precise egg count analysis, freeing experimenters from manual data processing. Software access is free and its user-friendly interface allows easy use by non-experts. Its efficiency has been tested in our laboratory with oviposition dual choices of Aedes aegypti females. The next step will be the development of a mobile application, based on the ICount platform, for vector monitoring surveys in the field. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13071-016-1870-1) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.