Mosquito species, seasonality, abundance, and resting sites in three villages of Peshawar, Pakistan

To study adult mosquito species resting sites selection in the study area, they prefer cattle sheds despite the availability of mixed dwellings and human dwellings. Further, to study the relative abundance of different mosquito genera (Culex, Aedes, Anopheles, and Mansonia) in different rural villages, the present research work was carried out in the Entomology Research Laboratory, University of Peshawar, Pakistan. Indoor resting mosquitoes were collected from several shelters (rooms), including human dwellings and cattle sheds in the three rural villages of Peshawar during September 2018 - October 2019. The Flet method was used for capturing all the mosquitoes available in a room. The study conducted in different settlements, including rural areas of Peshawar, yielded a total of 12 species of mosquitoes belonging to four genera (Aedes, Anopheles, Culex, and Mansonia). A total of 4,928 (2,306 + 899 + 1,723) adult mosquitoes (2,908 females and 2,020 males) were captured using the Flet method from eighteen shelters, including nine human dwellings and nine cattle sheds, in the three study villages in Peshawar. The abundance of mosquitoes was higher in cattle sheds than in human dwellings; of the total capture, 60% (2,931/4,928) came from the cattle sheds, verifying that cattle sheds were more attractive than the human dwellings. Mosquito abundance was richly reported from cattle sheds, which should be given special attention during any control programme targeting adult mosquitoes. Furthermore, as mosquito increase was apparent during the post-monsoon season, the control measures should be enhanced during this time to ensure maximum protection of the inhabitants.