A New Record of the Introduced Species Triatoma infestans (Hemiptera: Reduviidae) in Mexico

Abstract

Here, we report a new record of Triatoma infestans (Klug) in Mexico after 50 years and provide a brief description of the discovery area. Fifty-nine specimens (71.2% adults) of the introduced species were collected from the peridomestic areas of a single house in the port of Manzanillo in the state of Colima, Mexico. Thirty-one specimens (52.5%) were collected from the exterior walls of the house and were apparently attracted to light. The other specimens (47.5%) were associated with chickens. No specimen was infected with Trypanosoma cruzi Chagas, the causative agent of Chagas disease, possibly because they were feeding on chickens. We speculate that the introduced species travelled from South America to Mexico via seed shipment in a twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) maritime container. Because Mexican phytosanitary regulations demand only the cargo to be inspected, the triatomines could have escaped notice during inspection. Subsequently, as the cargo was unloaded and the TEU was stored, the triatomines likely flew to and invaded the nearby residential areas. The rediscovery of this domestic vector of T. cruzi in Mexico warrants further investigation owing to the potential risk of transmission to the inhabitants of the study area.

First record of Triatoma longipennis, Usinger, 1939 (Hemiptera: Reduviidae: Triatominae) in Tecozautla, Hidalgo

“…Hidalgo State does not border any of the states where T. longipennis has been previously reported. This finding suggests several possible scenarios, one being that this species was passively introduced, such as in the recently reported case of Triatoma infestans in Mexico 5 , and another being that this species is present in at least one neighboring state. The latter scenario is most likely related to the species’ presence in Queretaro State, which borders Hidalgo to the south and Guanajuato to the north, and where T. longipennis and T. mexicana have already been found 13 .…”

“…There are currently 156 known living triatomine species and 3 fossil species, which are grouped into 18 genera and 5 tribes 2 , 3 . In Mexico, 35 triatomine species have been reported and are grouped into 8 genera 3 , 4 , 5 . The Triatoma genus, consisting of 24 species (six formerly called Meccus ), is the most abundant and widely distributed genus.…”

Rabbit Fibroma Virus infection in domestic rabbits (<i>Oryctolagus cuniculus</i>) in Mexico

“…There are several arthropods known to serve as vectors of Rabbit Fibroma Virus and these include mosquitoes ( Aedes aegypti , Aedes triseriatus , Culex pipiens , Culex quinquefasciatus and Anopheles quadrimaculatus ), reduviid bugs ( Triatoma infestans , Triatoma phyllosoma and Rhodnius prolixus ) and bed-bugs ( Cimex lectularius ) [ 2 ]. Some of these vectors are distributed in Mexico [ 3 , 12 , 13 ]. Due to the proximity of Mexico to the United States, where most of the cases have been reported, and the distribution of similar arthropod vectors, the probability of having the disease in Mexico was high.…”

New Records of Triatomine: Triatoma rubida1 and T. sinaloensis1 at Sonora, Northwestern Mexico

“…The Triatomini tribe is composed of nine genera: Dipetalogaster Usinger; Eratyrus Stål; Hermanlentia Jurberg and Galvão; Linshcosteus Distant; Mepraia Mazza, Gajardo and Jörg; Nesotriatoma Usinger; Panstrongylus Berg; Paratriatoma Barber; and Triatoma Laporte; of which, Eratyrus , Dipetalogaster , Panstrongylus , and Triatoma are in Mexico (Velasco-Castrejón and Rivas-Sánchez 2008). In Mexico, the genus Triatoma (including genus Meccus Stål) has 27 species (Velasco-Castrejón and Rivas-Sánchez 2008, Martínez-Hernández et al 2022). At Sonora, the first triatomine records were by Mazzotti and Diaz (1949) who reported Triatoma incrassata Usinger and T. rubida (Uhler) (with their synonymies T. rubida sonoriana Usinger and T. uhleri Neiva).…”