Distribution and Seasonality of <I>Phlebotomus</I> Sand Flies in Cutaneous Leishmaniasis Foci, Judean Desert, Israel

Abstract

The ecology of Phlebotomus sand flies in cutaneous leishmaniasis foci as a result of Leishmania tropica in the Judean Desert was studied. Between 2005 and 2007, >265,000 specimens were trapped outdoors and 1,233 specimens were collected indoors. The catches included Phlebotomus sergenti Parrot, Phlebotomus papatasi (Scopoli), Phlebotomus syriacus Adler & Theodor, and Phlebotomus tobbi Adler & Theodor. P. sergenti, the local vector of Leishmania tropica, comprised 90% of outdoor catches, and relatively few were caught indoors. Conversely, P. papatasi were > 90% of the indoor collections, and only a few were caught outdoors. The efficiency of trapping methods varied, but species composition and sex ratio remained constant irrespective of method. Sand flies were abundant on slopes facing east where wind velocity was low, and scarce on slopes facing west and residential areas. Large numbers and high proportion of males that occur near breeding sites were found in man-made rock walls and in rock crevices on slopes of uncultivated hills. Population increase began in April, was more intensive between May and November, peaked in August-September, and significantly decreased in December. Indoors, most of the P. sergenti (< 80%) were collected from September to November. A few sand flies were found between January and March. The effects of climatic factors and human activities on sand fly populations and the risk of Leishmania infections are discussed.

Temporal distribution and behaviour of sand flies (Diptera: Psychodidae) in a cutaneous leishmaniasis focus of the Kani Tribe settlements in the Western Ghats, India

“…Das and Ramaiah (2002) disagreed that human-landing collection of medically important insects is regarded unethical, due to risk of volunteers being infected with vector-borne diseases. Both sticky-trap and lighttrap methods have been recommended for monitoring sand fly abundance (Hoel et al, 2007;Orshan et al, 2010). Yet, Burkett et al (2007) has emphasized that use of sticky trap and light trap attracted sand flies only from their immediate breeding sites and accordingly tend to yield a relatively low number of sand fly specimens.…”

Leishmaniasis transmission: distribution and coarse-resolution ecology of two vectors and two parasites in Egypt

“…CL transmission is known to respond to climate and land use: for instance, invasion of periurban habitats in South America has been attributed to combinations of changing climates and increased habitat perturbation [7][8][9][10] . Recent CL epidemics have been reported in Iran and Colombia [11][12] , likely reflecting responses of CL to environmental, demographic, and human behavioral factors [13][14] .…”

Seasonal and spatial changes of sand fly species in a canyon in the Carmel Mountains

“…There are about 14 phlebotomus sand fly species in Israel and three are vectors for cutaneous Leishmaniasis (oral communication with Dr. L. Orshan, entomological laboratory of the Ministry of Health, Israel). Several studies investigated the ecology of P. papatasi , the vector of L. major in desert habitats (Schlein et al 1984, Wasserberg et al 2002); however, the few reports on the ecology of the other species are from domestic and peridomestic habitats in the foci of leishmaniasis (Kravchenko et al 2004, Orshan et al 2010).…”