Flebotomíneos coletados em matas remanescentes e abrigos de animais silvestres de zoológico no perímetro urbano de Maringá, sul do Brasil. Estudo preliminar

Abstract

The present study was undertaken after the detection of one case of cutaneous leishmaniasis with presumed infection in one of the three remaining wooded areas in the urban area of the city of Maringá, Southern Brazil; also in view of the lack of knowledge about sand flies and their behavior. From June to September, 1995, sand flies were caught with Falcão traps during the night in the remaining wooded areas (Parque do Ingá, Bosque Dois and Horto Florestal). A total of 2,907 sand flies were caught in Parque do Ingá; 1,723 of them were aught in forest traps and 1,184 in wild animal shelter traps at the zoo. The results show that Lutzomyia whitmani is better adapted to the three areas under study and that it frequently occurs in wild animal shelters within the urban perimeter of Maringá.

Ecologia de Lutzomyia (Nyssomyia) whitmani em área urbana do município de Maringá, Paraná

“…16 The almost absolute domination of L. whitmani over the other species corroborates what was previously observed in this park. 16 The high prevalence of this species has been observed in endemic areas of tegumentary leishmaniasis in northern Paraná.…”

“…16 The almost absolute domination of L. whitmani over the other species corroborates what was previously observed in this park. 16 The high prevalence of this species has been observed in endemic areas of tegumentary leishmaniasis in northern Paraná. 6,11 -16 The infection of L. whitmani by Leishmania (Viannia) braziliensis that has been proven in the States of Paraná 6 and Ceará 1,8 highlights the importance of this species in the epidemiology of that disease.…”

“…The small number of phlebotomines collected in the shelter housing the lions and howler monkey (FT1) was different from what was previously collected, 16 when this same shelter was housing a jaguar and yielded the greatest number of phlebotomines of all the shelters for captive forest animals. The low attractive power of the pair of lions for phlebotomines may be explained by the fact that this mammal does not form part of the native Brazilian fauna.…”

“…This fact has already been noted in the Ingá Park. 16 The results suggest that the larger quantities of phlebotomines collected in FT3 and FT4 may have been due to the presence of mammals in the shelters where these traps were placed. However, according to Campbell-Lendrum et al 3 (1999) and Quinnel et al 9 (1991), the order of preference that these insects show in relation to hosts is a function of the size or density of such hosts.…”

“…1,2,6,8,10 In the Ingá Park, the remaining native forest provides shelter for a variety of forest mammal species, which form a potential reservoir for In an earlier study in the Ingá Park and another two preserved areas within the urban perimeter of Maringá that are covered with native forest, phlebotomines were found to be present within the forest, especially within habitats for wild animals. 16 In the present investigation, the aim was to expand the knowledge of phlebotomine fauna composition, the inclination of these insects to feed on blood from certain hosts, and the hours of the night and the months in which they are most frequent, in the Ingá Park.…”