Cuticular Hydrocarbon Analysis as a Tool in Sandfly Identification

Abstract

It has been recognised over the last twenty years that many important groups of insect vectors which were initially thought to be single species are, in fact, complexes of sibling species. Characteristically/ these species are morphologically indistinguishable or separable only by minor characters involving detailed mo. rpho. metric examination. Identification of the sibling species becomes a necessity in studies involving the vector, as often important differences are shown to exist between these species, eg. in their vectorial capacity, feeding preferences etc. (for example see Milligan et al., 1986). Since the deterirmination of the Anopheles gambiae species complex (Davidson, 1964; Coluzzi and Sabatini, 1967) and Simulium damnosum s.l (Vajime and Dunbar, 1975), there has been increasing evidence that many other groups of Anopheles (e.g. Baimai et al., 1984), Simulium (e.g. Shelley et al., 1987) and now also Phlebotomus and Lutzomyia (present study) are complexes of very closely related species.