Memórias do Instituto Oswaldo Cruz (2013) 108, 463-469

Adolfo Vásquez Trujillo, Angélica E. González Reina, Agustín Góngora Orjuela, Edgar Prieto Suárez, Jairo Enrique Palomares and Luz Stella Buitrago Alvarez (2013)
Seasonal variation and natural infection of Lutzomyia antunesi (Diptera: Psychodidae: Phlebotominae), an endemic species in the Orinoquia region of Colombia
Memórias do Instituto Oswaldo Cruz 108 (4), 463-469
Abstract: Lutzomyia antunesi has been commonly reported in outbreaks of cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) in the Orinoquia region of Colombia. The bionomics of this species were studied in the municipality of Villavicencio (Meta, Colombia). Sandflies were captured over the course of one week per month for one year in intradomiciliary, peridomiciliary and extradomiciliary housing areas. The captures were performed from 06:00 pm-06:00 am using CDC light traps and the females were processed for polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to detect Leishmania spp. A total of 22,097 specimens and 19 species were captured of which Lu. antunesi (89%) and Lutzomyia walkeri (5%) were the most abundant. Other species recognised as anthropophilic (Lutzomyia panamensis, Lutzomyia gomezi, Lutzomyia flaviscutellata and Lutzomyia fairtigi) were present in very low abundance (< 2%). Natural infection with Leishmania spp was detected using PCR in Lu. antunesi, Lu. panamensis and Lu. flavicutellata, showing infection rates of 1%, 4.8% and 7.5%, respectively. The present paper provides information on various ecological aspects of Lu. antunesi. An analysis of seasonality shows that this species increases in abundance in the hottest months (December, January and February), directly correlating with the maximum temperature and inversely correlating with precipitation. The natural infection rate is associated with the peaks of highest abundance.
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Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
population dynamics/ epidemiology
surveys/sampling/distribution

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Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
	Lutzomyia gomezi		Colombia
	Lutzomyia yuilli		Colombia
	Lutzomyia flaviscutellata		Colombia
	Lutzomyia antunesi		Colombia
	Lutzomyia panamensis		Colombia
	Lutzomyia micropyga		Colombia
	Lutzomyia chagasi		Colombia
	Lutzomyia walkeri		Colombia
	Lutzomyia punctigeniculata		Colombia
	Lutzomyia sordellii		Colombia
	Lutzomyia aragaoi		Colombia