Fauna and some biological characteristics of Anopheles mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae) in Kalaleh County, Golestan Province, northeast of Iran

Objective: To determine fauna and some ecological aspects of Anopheles mosquitoes in northeast of Iran. Methods: In this descriptive study, 3 villages in Kalaleh County were selected in different geographical zones. Anopheles mosquitoes were collected biweekly from May to October using standard dipp...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Asian Pacific Journal of Tropical Biomedicine
Main Authors: Aioub Sofizadeh, Hamideh Edalat, Mohammad Reza Abai, Ahmad Ali Hanafi-Bojd
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications 2016
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apjtb.2016.07.005
https://doaj.org/article/6c3d614786e74fc580b9d01a2dee1d58
Description
Summary:Objective: To determine fauna and some ecological aspects of Anopheles mosquitoes in northeast of Iran. Methods: In this descriptive study, 3 villages in Kalaleh County were selected in different geographical zones. Anopheles mosquitoes were collected biweekly from May to October using standard dipping method for larvae, and hand catch, total catch, artificial pit shelter as well as night-biting collections on human and animal baits for adults. Results: Totally 399 larvae and 2602 adults of Anopheles mosquitoes were collected and identified as 2 species: Anopheles superpictus s.l. (An. superpictus s.l.) and Anopheles maculipennis s.l. The dominant species was An. superpictus s.l. (92.1%). Activity of these mosquitoes found to be started from middle of May and extended till September with two peaks of activity in July and August. Conclusions: An. superpictus s.l. as one of the main malaria vectors in Iran as well as some other parts of the world is the dominant species in the study area. This species has high potential for transmission and possibility of establishing a transmission cycle with low abundance. Other species, Anopheles maculipennis s.l. also has introduced as a malaria vector in northern parts of Iran. As this Anopheles is a complex species, genetic studies are recommended to determine the members of this complex in the study area.