Ecological aspects of the bancroftian filariasis vectors, Culex pipiens and Cx. quinquefasciatus (Diptera: Culicidae) in Hail, Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Some of ecological aspects of Cx. pipiens and Cx. quinquefasciatus were examined in Hail Region, Saudi Arabia. For Cx. quinquefasciatus, shade (P˂0.01) and absence of algae (P˂0.05) and for Cx. pipiens, stagnant water (P˂0.05) of the breeding habitat seem to be determining factors in occurrence of such species. Both species were common in the middle of Hail. Larval abundance of both species is directly related to water temperature (P˂0.01) and adult abundance is directly related to weather temperature (P˂0.05) and inversely related to RH and WV (P˃0.05). For both species, larvae breed and adults were active all year round with summer and autumn peaks of abundance. Results are of importance in predicting the period of maximum risk of disease transmission and for carrying out an effective control program in this part of the Kingdom that acts as a passage for Muslim pilgrims in their way to Makkah and Al Madinah.