title: Performance of five food regimes on Anopheles gambiae senso stricto larval rearing to adult emergence in insectary.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Rearing of Anopheles gambiae s.s mosquitoes in insectary with quality cheap food sources is of paramount importance for better and healthy colony. This study evaluated larval survival and the development rate of aquatic stages of An.gambiae s.s under five food regimes; tetramin fish food (a standard insectary larval food), maize pollen, Cerelac, green filamentous algae and dry powdered filamentous algae.
  
  
  METHODS
  Food materials were obtained from different sources, cerelac was made locally, fresh filamentous algae was taken from water bodies, dry filamentous algae was ground to powder after it was dried under shade, and maize pollen was collected from the flowering maize. Each food source type was used to feed three densities of mosquito larvae 20, 60, and 100 in six replicates each. Larval age structure was monitored daily until pupation and subsequently adult emergence. Tetramin was used and taken as a standard food source for An. gambiae s.s. larvae feeding in Insectary.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Larval survivorship using maize pollen and Tetramin fish food was statistically insignificant (P = 0.564). However when compared to other food regime survivorship was significantly different with Tetramin fish food performing better than cerelac (P<0.001), dry algae (P<0.001) and fresh algae (P<0.001). The pupation rates and sex ratio of emerging adults had significant differences among the food regimes.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The findings of this study have shown that maize pollen had closely similar nutritional value for larval survivorship to tetramin fish food, a standard larvae food in insectary. Further studies are required to assess the effect of food sources on various life traits of the emerged adults.
authors.affiliation: Department of Zoology and Wildlife Conservation, College of Natural and Applied Sciences, University of Dar-es-salaam, Dar-es-salaam, Tanzania.
authors.forename: Happiness S
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Kivuyo
authors.affiliation: Department of Zoology and Wildlife Conservation, College of Natural and Applied Sciences, University of Dar-es-salaam, Dar-es-salaam, Tanzania.
authors.forename: Paschal H
authors.initials: PH
authors.lastname: Mbazi
authors.affiliation: Department of Zoology and Wildlife Conservation, College of Natural and Applied Sciences, University of Dar-es-salaam, Dar-es-salaam, Tanzania.
authors.forename: Denis S
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Kisika
authors.affiliation: Centre for Global Health Research, Kenya Medical Research Institute, Kisumu, Kenya.
authors.forename: Stephen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Munga
authors.affiliation: National Institute for Medical Research, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
authors.forename: Susan F
authors.initials: SF
authors.lastname: Rumisha
authors.affiliation: Department of Zoology and Wildlife Conservation, College of Natural and Applied Sciences, University of Dar-es-salaam, Dar-es-salaam, Tanzania.
authors.forename: Felister M
authors.initials: FM
authors.lastname: Urasa
authors.affiliation: Tropical Pesticides Research Institute, Division Of Livestock And Human Diseases Vector Control, Mosquito Section, Arusha, Tanzania; Department of Medical Parasitology and Entomology, Catholic University of Health and Allied Sciences, Mwanza, Tanzania.
authors.forename: Eliningaya J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Kweka
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000852:Anopheles / Q000254:growth & development*; D004032:Diet; D005260:Female; D005502:Food; D007814:Larva / Q000254:growth & development; D008297:Male; D011679:Pupa / Q000254:growth & development; D012744:Sex Ratio; D016019:Survival Analysis; D003313:Zea mays