Vectors

Anopheles mosquitoes, malaria vectors

Anopheles, the Vector

Anopheles mosquito, malaria vector

Anopheles was introduced as a genus of mosquitoes in 1818 by Johann Wilhelm Meigen, a German entomologist famous for his revolutionary studies of Diptera. Little was done on the taxonomy of Anopheles until the discovery during the last two decades of the 19th century that mosquitoes transmit microfilariae and malarial protozoa, which initiated a drive to collect, name and classify these insects. In 1898, the Royal Society and the Rt. Hon. Joseph Chamberlain, Secretary of State for the Colonies of Britain, appointed a Committee to supervise the investigation of malaria.

Anopheles freeborni

Anopheles freeborni mosquito, malaria vector

The larvae are found in clear seepage water, in roadside pools, in rice fields, and in other similar habitats. Pools that are sunlit, at least part of the day, seem to be preferred, although larvae are occasionally found in rather densely shaded pools. Heavy production of larvae often occurs in matted algal growths in water along the margins of rice fields. The females enter houses readily and feed on man. They are more active at dusk and during the night but occasionally do attack man during the daylight hours in dense shade or on cloudy days. (Carpenter and LaCasse 1955)

Anopheles albimanus

Anopheles albimanus mosquito, malaria vector

Anopheles albimanus it is one of the main vectors of malaria in Central America, northern South America and the Caribbean. On the Atlantic coast it is found from Texas to Venezuela, on most of the Caribbean islands and on the Pacific coast, from Mexico to northern Peru.

Pages