Culex pipiens (Culicidae) is attracted to humans in southern Ontario, but will it serve as a bridge vector of West Nile virus?

2012 ◽  
Vol 144 (5) ◽  
pp. 667-671 ◽  
Author(s):  
Curtis Russell ◽  
Fiona F. Hunter
Keyword(s):  
West Nile Virus ◽  
Disease Control ◽  
Culex Pipiens ◽  
Forest Canopy ◽  
Ground Level ◽  
Light Traps ◽  
Aedes Vexans ◽  
West Nile ◽  
Southern Ontario ◽  
Baited Traps

AbstractWe tested whether the known bird-biting mosquito, Culex pipiens Linnaeus (Diptera: Culicidae), is attracted to human hosts by placing humans at ground level (∼1.5 m) or in the forest canopy (∼5 m) in a Niagara woodlot. Modified Centers for Disease Control (CDC) miniature light traps (no light, no CO2) were placed next to the human hosts to capture the attracted mosquitoes. The human-baited traps were compared with control traps (standard CDC miniature light traps with CO2, but no light). As expected from previous research, there were more C. pipiens captured at the higher elevation than at ground level. Generally, they were attracted to control traps more than to human-baited traps at 5 m, whereas at 1.5 m there was no difference between the two trap types. As a comparison, most Aedes vexans (Meigen) mosquitoes were captured at the 1.5 m elevation but there were significantly more captured in the control traps than the human-baited traps during all periods. Because C. pipiens is attracted to humans throughout the entire season at the 1.5 m height (where they might encounter humans), it is likely that C. pipiens can serve as a bridge vector of West Nile virus (WNV).

Influence of elevation and avian or mammalian hosts on attraction of Culex pipiens (Diptera: Culicidae) in southern Ontario

2010 ◽  
Vol 142 (3) ◽  
pp. 250-255 ◽  
Author(s):  
Curtis Russell ◽  
Fiona F. Hunter
Keyword(s):  
West Nile Virus ◽  
Culex Pipiens ◽  
Potential Role ◽  
Late Period ◽  
Light Traps ◽  
Southern Ontario ◽  
Baited Traps ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Important Exception

AbstractWe studied Culex pipiens L. in the Niagara Region of Ontario, Canada, to establish whether or not these mosquitoes are attracted to hosts other than birds at different elevations or as the season progresses. Guinea-pigs and chickens were used as representative mammalian and avian hosts, respectively. Bait animals were placed next to modified CDC miniature light traps (no light and no CO2) hung 1.5 or 5 m above ground in a Niagara woodlot. The season was divided into three 6-week periods (early, middle, and late). Significantly more C. pipiens were captured at the 5 m than at the 1.5 m elevation. In general, chicken-baited traps were preferred over control and guinea-pig-baited traps, with one important exception: there was no significant difference among traps during the late period at 1.5 m elevation. The potential role of C. pipiens as a bridging vector of West Nile virus to humans is discussed.

scholarly journals Comparison of vector competence of Aedes vexans Green River and Culex pipiens biotype pipiens for West Nile virus lineages 1 and 2

2020 ◽  
Vol 67 (4) ◽  
pp. 416-424
Author(s):  
Elisabeth Wöhnke ◽  
Ana Vasic ◽  
Cristian Raileanu ◽  
Cora Marielle Holicki ◽  
Birke Andrea Tews ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
West Nile Virus ◽  
Culex Pipiens ◽  
Vector Competence ◽  
Aedes Vexans ◽  
West Nile ◽  
Green River

scholarly journals Effect of Incandescent Light on Collection of West Nile Virus Vectors Using CDC Miniature Light Traps in Northern Colorado

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Broox G V Boze ◽  
Kelsey Renfro ◽  
Daniel Markowski ◽  
Saul Lozano-Fuentes
Keyword(s):  
West Nile Virus ◽  
Culex Pipiens ◽  
Collection Efficiency ◽  
Control Measures ◽  
Culex Tarsalis ◽  
Light Traps ◽  
West Nile ◽  
Incandescent Light ◽  
Phototactic Behavior ◽  
Northern Colorado

Abstract To evaluate whether the presence of clear incandescent light was attractive or refractive to host-seeking mosquitoes in northern Colorado, a Bayesian hierarchical model was created to measure differences in trap effectiveness based on presence or absence of phototactic cues. A total of eight CDC miniature light traps (with and without light) were set weekly across four locations in northern Colorado between Weeks 23 and 32 of year 2020. Culex mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae) accounted for 81% of all collections in this study with two vectors of West Nile virus being represented. The probability of catching both Culex tarsalis Coquillett and Culex pipiens Linnaeus was reduced when traps were equipped with light, but the difference was not statistically significant for Culex tarsalis. The clear reduction in the number of Culex pipiens caught when these traps were equipped with light indicates negative phototactic behavior and underestimation with current surveillance strategies. Removal of light from these traps may aid our understanding of these species’ distribution within the environment, improve collection efficiency, and help guide implementation of targeted control measures used in public health mosquito control.

scholarly journals Screening of Mosquitoes for West Nile Virus and Usutu Virus in Croatia, 2015–2020

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 45
Author(s):  
Ana Klobucar ◽  
Vladimir Savic ◽  
Marcela Curman Posavec ◽  
Suncica Petrinic ◽  
Urska Kuhar ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
West Nile Virus ◽  
Culex Pipiens ◽  
Rt Pcr ◽  
West Nile ◽  
Usutu Virus ◽  
Culex Pipiens Complex ◽  
Mammalian Origin ◽  
Mosquito Pool ◽  
The City ◽  
Generation Sequencing

In the period from 2015 to 2020, an entomological survey for the presence of West Nile virus (WNV) and Usutu virus (USUV) in mosquitoes was performed in northwestern Croatia. A total of 20,363 mosquitoes were sampled in the City of Zagreb and Međimurje county, grouped in 899 pools and tested by real-time RT-PCR for WNV and USUV RNA. All pools were negative for WNV while one pool each from 2016 (Aedes albopictus), 2017 (Culex pipiens complex), 2018 (Cx. pipiens complex), and 2019 (Cx. pipiens complex), respectively, was positive for USUV. The 2018 and 2019 positive pools shared 99.31% nucleotide homology within the USUV NS5 gene and both clustered within USUV Europe 2 lineage. The next-generation sequencing of one mosquito pool (Cx. pipiens complex) collected in 2018 in Zagreb confirmed the presence of USUV and revealed several dsDNA and ssRNA viruses of insect, bacterial and mammalian origin.

scholarly journals Amblyomma tapirellum  (Acari: Ixodidae) collected from tropical forest canopy

F1000Research ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
pp. 194
Author(s):  
Jose R Loaiza ◽  
Matthew J Miller ◽  
Eldredge Bermingham ◽  
Oris I Sanjur ◽  
Patrick A Jansen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Tropical Forests ◽  
Forest Canopy ◽  
Ground Level ◽  
Barro Colorado Island ◽  
Light Traps ◽  
Ecological Relationship ◽  
Questing Ticks ◽  
Free Ranging ◽  
Central Panama ◽  
Tropical Forest Canopy

Free-ranging ticks are widely known to be restricted to the ground level of vegetation. Here, we document the capture of the tick species Amblyomma tapirellum in light traps placed in the forest canopy of Barro Colorado Island, central Panama. A total of forty eight adults and three nymphs were removed from carbon dioxide–octenol baited CDC light traps suspended 20 meters above the ground during surveys for forest canopy mosquitoes. To our knowledge, this represents the first report of questing ticks from the canopy of tropical forests. Our finding suggests a novel ecological relationship between A. tapirellum and arboreal mammals, perhaps monkeys that come to the ground to drink or to feed on fallen fruits.

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