From June 19, 2003 to August 18, 2003, we surveyed the mosquitoes of Oberlin, OH, for West Nile Virus (WNV) infection using reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction. A total of 12,055 mosquitoes, representing 17 species or species groups and 4 genera, were collected in gravid traps at seven sites throughout the city, with Culex pipiens/restuans being the most abundant and showing the hig...

To evaluate the role of Culex mosquitoes as enzootic and epidemic vectors for WNV, we identified the source of vertebrate blood by polymerase chain reaction amplification and sequencing portions of the cytochrome b gene of mitochondrial DNA. All Cx. restuans and 93% of Cx. pipiens acquired blood from avian hosts; Cx. salinarius fed frequently on both mammals (53%) and birds (36%). Mixed-blood m...

Host-feeding patterns of Culex pipiens L. collected in southwest suburban Chicago in 2005 were studied using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and DNA sequencing techniques. Culex spp. mosquitoes, most identified to Cx. pipiens and the remainder to Cx. restuans by PCR, had fed on 18 avian species, most commonly American robin (Turdus migratorious), house sparrow (Passer domesticus), and mourning ...

Hepatozoon species are heteroxenous parasites that commonly infect the blood of vertebrates and various organs of arthropods. Despite their ubiquity, little is known about how these parasites affect host phenotype, including whether or not these parasites induce changes in hosts to increase transmission success. The objectives of this research were to investigate influences of the frog blood pa...

Mosquito species are responsible for the transmission of many parasitic diseases and their control leads to the phenomenon of resistance to insecticides. Five Culex pipiens samples were collected from various localities of Grand Tunis area, Northeast Tunisia, between June 2003 and November 2005. All the studied samples were resistant to pirimiphos methyl (organophosphorus insecticide). Our resu...

Gravid traps are commonly used by mosquito control agencies to collect local populations of Culex pipiens, which are then tested for the presence of West Nile virus. Culex pipiens adults disperse a relatively short distance (~2.5 km) from their breeding site, so it can be challenging to position a sufficient number of gravid traps to accurately monitor these mosquitoes in large urban areas. As ...

The effectiveness of CO2-baited Centers for Disease Control and Prevention miniature light traps elevated in the tree canopy (approximately 7.6 m) was compared with light traps placed at ground level (approximately1.5 m) and grass-sod infused gravid traps for collecting Culex pipiens, Culex restuans, and Culex salinarius and detecting West Nile virus (WNV) activity in an operational surveillanc...

The Culex pipiens complex consists of vector mosquitoes that transmit important human pathogens. In this study we established a simplified method to distinguish three members of the Cx. pipiens complex, Cx. p. pallens Coquillet, Cx. p. form molestus Forskal, and Cx. quinquefasciatus Say, collected in Japan. Sequence analysis of the Drosophila Ace-orthologous acetylcholinesterase (Ace) gene (668...

OBJECTIVE Four plant extracts possessing molluscicidal and insecticidal efficacy were evaluated under laboratory conditions versus Biomphalaria alexandrina, Lymnea cailliaudi snails, their egg masses and Culex pipiens larvae. These extracts included Grape seed, Eucalyptus, Pomegranate, Verbesina alcoholic extracts, as well as Eucalyptus oil. METHODS Different mortalities in the exposed vector...