The species composition of mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae) in the Mahshahr district, Khuzestan province, southwest of Iran

There is very little information about the mosquito fauna of Mahshahr district. The present study gives an overview of data on the species composition and distribution of mosquitoes in the Mahshahr district, Khuzestan province, southwest of Iran. In order to study the mosquito fauna, the samples were collected from May to November 2012 using dipping and total catch methods from seven villages (Soveireh, Hadid, Seraimeh, Meksar, Hashtcheh, Seyed Yahya and Maghtoo Sofla) and two towns (Shahrake Meghdad and Shahrake Dastgheib) in the Mahshahr district. Totally 1023 adult mosquitoes and 1618 larvae were collected and four genera along with eleven species of Culicidae were identified, including; Anopheles stephensi Liston, An. superpictus Grassi, An. dthali Patton, An. pulcherrimus Theobald, Culex pusillus Macquart, Cx. quinquefasciatus Say, Cx. sitaiticus Kirkpatrick, Cx. theileri Theobald, Cx. perexiguus Theobald, Ochlerotatus caspius Pallas and Culiseta longiareolata Macquart. There are some potential or proven vectors of different human and domesticated animal pathogens in Mahshahr district. The ecology of these species of Mahshahr district need to be investigated extensively.