title: Characteristics of the biological cycle of Lutzomyia evandroi Costa Lima & Antunes, 1936 (Diptera: Psychodidae) under experimental conditions.
abstract: Lutzomyia evandroi Costa Lima and Antunes, 1936 is found in Rio Grande do Norte, northeastern Brazil, in areas of visceral and mucocutaneous leishmaniasis and follows the same geographic distribution of L. longipalpis. The biological cycle, oviposition, morphological and behavioral characteristics of the species were studied under experimental conditions. The average number of eggs per wild caught female varied from 21 to 50 eggs along the year, with a peak occurring between January and March and another in August, with oviposition lasting for 4 to 12 days. The mean larval phase was 24 days. Ovipositing rates were influenced by rainfall and temperature indexes, with an increase of eggs per oviposition at the beginning and at the end of the rainy season, and a decrease at the peak of the rainy season.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Microbiologia e Parasitologia, Centro de Biociências, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, 59078-970 Natal, RN, Brasil. ximenes@cb.ufrn.br
authors.forename: M de F
authors.initials: Mde F
authors.lastname: de Melo Ximenes
authors.forename: J C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Maciel
authors.forename: S M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Jerônimo
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D005260:Female; D008018:Life Cycle Stages / Q000502:physiology; D008297:Male; D010058:Oviposition / Q000502:physiology; D011576:Psychodidae / Q000254:growth & development*; D012621:Seasons; D013696:Temperature