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Entomological characteristics of mosquitoes breeding sites in two areas of the town of Douala, Cameroon

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Abstract

Many infectious diseases including malaria, lymphatic filariasis, chikungunya and dengue are transmitted by mosquitoes. Understanding the entomological diversity in a given area is critical for defining health risks, but also to design and evaluate control measures. Our study aimed to establish an entomological database of the Culicidae fauna in two clusters (Nyalla and Kambo) in the city of Douala in Cameroon. A longitudinal study was conducted from August to December in the Nyalla and Kambo neighbourhoods in the city of Douala. Culicidae larvae were weekly collected and reared until adult emergence. Adults were then morphologically identified using reference identification keys. A total of 20 breeding sites were productive out of an approximately 90 sites prospected. Water collections, pits, swamps and cinder blocks were main categories of larval habitats. In total, 2125 mosquito larvae were collected and reared during the survey. A total of 1790 mosquito adults emerged and were further identified and distributed among three genera: Culex (73.3%); Anopheles (22.6%) and Aedes (4.1%). Eleven Culicidae species were identified: Culex duttoni, Cx. descens, Cx. poicilipes, Cx. univittatus, Cx tigripes, Cx. antennatus, Cx. simpsoni, Cx. pipiens, Anopheles gambiae sl, Aedes aegypti and Ae. albopictus. Culex duttoni (39%) and An. gambiae s.l. (22.6%) were the main species recorded. The equitability, species richness and abundance of these genera was influenced by the nature of breeding sites and physical parameters including rainfall and temperature. The present study provides insights on the entomological diversity of the Culicidae fauna in the study area. Such information will help to orientate the fight against mosquito vectors in conjunction with the species and the types of breeding sites.

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Abbreviations

ACI:

Absolute Culicidae index

ANOVA:

Analysis of variance

GCI:

General Culicidae index

GPS:

Global Positioning System

Minsanté:

Ministère de la Santé publique (Ministry of Public Health)

RCI:

relative Culicidae index (RCI)

RBM:

Roll Back Malaria

USA:

The United States of America

WHO:

World Health Organization

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Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful to the populations of Nyalla and Kambo areas in Cameroon for their collaboration in the measurement of physical characteristics of breeding sites.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory of Animal Biology and Physiology, Faculty of Sciences, The University of Douala, P.O Box 24157, Douala, Cameroon

    Agnes Antoinette Ntoumba, Loick Pradel Kojom Foko, Wolfgang Eyisap Ekoko, Jerson Mekoulou Ndongo & Leopold Gustave Lehman

  2. Organisation de Coordination pour la lutte contre les Endémies en Afrique Centrale (OCEAC), P.O Box 288, Yaoundé, Cameroun

    Wolfgang Eyisap Ekoko

  3. Department of Zoology and Animal Physiology, University of Buea, P.O. Box 63, Buea, Cameroon

    Godlove Wepnje Bunda

  4. Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, The University of Douala, P.O Box 2701, Douala, Cameroon

    Francois Eya’ane Meva & Leopold Gustave Lehman

Authors
  1. Agnes Antoinette Ntoumba
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  2. Loick Pradel Kojom Foko
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  3. Wolfgang Eyisap Ekoko
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  4. Jerson Mekoulou Ndongo
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  5. Godlove Wepnje Bunda
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  6. Francois Eya’ane Meva
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  7. Leopold Gustave Lehman
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Contributions

Designing study: AAN, LGL.

Data collection: AAN, LPK, JMN.

Write-up: AAN, LPK.

Revision: FEM, LPK, WEE, GWB, JMN, LGL.

Data analysis: FEM, LPK.

Supervision: LGL.

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Francois Eya’ane Meva or Leopold Gustave Lehman.

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Ntoumba, A.A., Kojom Foko, L.P., Ekoko, W.E. et al. Entomological characteristics of mosquitoes breeding sites in two areas of the town of Douala, Cameroon. Int J Trop Insect Sci 41, 1313–1323 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42690-020-00324-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s42690-020-00324-3

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