Anopheline mosquitoes of north-western Russia (Diptera, Culicidae): updated distribution and morphological characters

Mosquitoes of the genus <i>Anopheles</i> were collected in the Republic of Karelia, St. Petersburg, Leningrad Region, Novgorod Region and Pskov Region (Russia) in order to clarify their distribution and genetic and morphological diversity. ITS2 sequence analysis of <i>An. maculipennis</i> s. l. (58 specimens) showed that they belonged to <i>An. beklemishevi</i>, <i>An. messeae</i>, <i>An. daciae</i> and <i>An. maculipennis</i> s. str. Taking into account our earlier data on <i>An. claviger</i>, this means that there are five <i>Anopheles</i> spp. in north-western Russia whose records are confirmed by molecular methods. We revealed <i>An. daciae</i> in Leningrad and Pskov Regions for the first time and confirmed its distribution in Karelia. <i>Anopheles beklemishevi</i> was found near the Arctic Circle in north-western Karelia. The study of morphology of the female heads of <i>An. daciae</i>, <i>An. messeae</i> and <i>An. beklemishevi</i> showed they may potentially be used for differentiation of these species.