The medical importance and behaviour ofSimulium austeniEdwards (Diptera: Simuliidae) in England

Abstract

AbstractThe biting habits ofSimulium austeniEdwards, a species widely distributed through Europe and European Russia, were investigated in a population of flies creating a medical problem along the Stour Valley, Dorset, England, in May each year. Surveys were made by questionnaires and ‘bite-recording forms’. Sweep-netting, suction-trapping and sticky-trapping of adult flies was carried out. A search was made for oviposition sites. After initial complaints in the early 1960s, the problem reached a peak between 1969 and 1971 and has since shown an apparent decline. Women suffered more than men, with most bites received on the lower limbs. Biting activity was greatest between 09.00 and 21.00 h, and flight activity was greatest in the afternoon. Extensive male swarms were associated with mating and smaller female swarms with blood-sucking. Mating probably precedes biting. The absence of eggs from surface vegetation or stones and their widespread occurrence in the sediment, suggest that oviposition takes places directly into the water.