Anopheline mosquitos found breeding in Israel in 1963–1965 during the last stage of the malaria eradication project

Abstract

Intensive surveys for breeding places of anopheline mosquitos have been carried out in Israel since 1948, and have proved to be very effective for following the dynamic changes in anopheline populations. An account is given is given of the situation with regard to the breeding of anopheline mosquitos in Israel between 1963 and 1965, in the final stage of the malaria eradication project. During this period only nine of the 14 species ofAnophelesrecorded in Israel were found, and of theseA. sergentii(Theo.) andA. superpictusGrassi were the most abundant.About 85 per cent. of the breeding places were found in the northern part of the country. Fifty-four per cent. of the breeding places in the whole country were man-made. Seventeen per cent. of the 1330 samples of larvae determined contained larvae of more than one species. The distribution of different species in various biotopes and the seasonal variation in the number of breeding places of malaria-transmitting anophelines are also described.A. sacharoviFavr., the most important malaria vector in the past, has not been found in Israel since 1960. The observations onA. sergentiisuggest that an exophilic strain of this species has been selected in Israel.A. coustaniLav., hitherto a rare species, has been found breeding more frequently in recent years.The information collected during 1963–1965 is discussed for each species.