Population dynamics and community structure of Anopheles mosquitoes along the China-Myanmar border.
BACKGROUND
Understanding the ecology of malaria vectors such as species composition and population dynamics is essential for developing cost-effective strategies to control mosquito vector populations.


METHODS
Adult mosquitoes (n = 79,567) were collected in five villages along the China-Myanmar border from April 2012 to September 2014 using the CDC light trap without bait method. Mosquito community structure, Anopheles species composition and diversity were analyzed.


RESULTS
Twenty species of Anopheles mosquitoes were identified, with An. minimus s.l. accounting for 85% of the total collections. Mosquito densities varied from 0.05 females per trap per night (f/t/n) to 3.00 f/t/n, with strong seasonality in all sites and densities peaked from June to August. An. minimus s.l. was predominant (accounting for 54-91% of total captures) in four villages, An. maculatus s.l. was predominant (71%) in the high elevation village of Dao Nong, and An. culicifacies accounted for 15% of total captures in the peri-urban area of Simsa Lawk. All 20 species have been captured in the Mung Seng Yang village, 18 and 15 species in Ja Htu Kawng and Na Bang respectively, and nine species in both Simsa Lawk and Dao Nong. Species richness peaked from April to August. Species diversity, species dominance index, and species evenness fluctuated substantially from time to time with no clear seasonality, and varied greatly amongst villages.


CONCLUSIONS
Mosquitoes were abundant in the China-Myanmar bordering agricultural area with clear seasonality. Species composition and density were strongly affected by natural environments. The targeted intervention strategy should be developed and implemented so as to achieve cost-effectiveness for malaria control and elimination along the border areas.
Institute of Tropical Medicine, Third Military Medical University, Chongqing, China. wangyingtmmu@126.com.
Ying
Y
Wang
Program in Public Health, University of California at Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA. dzhong@uci.edu.
Daibin
D
Zhong
Department of Entomology, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA. luc2@psu.edu.
Liwang
L
Cui
Program in Public Health, University of California at Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA. mingchil@uci.edu.
Ming-Chieh
MC
Lee
Department of Pathogen Biology and Immunology, Kunming Medical University, Kunming, China. zhaoqingy92@hotmail.com.
Zhaoqing
Z
Yang
Program in Public Health, University of California at Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA. guiyuny@uci.edu.
Guiyun
G
Yan
Program in Public Health, University of California at Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA. zhoug@uci.edu.
Guofa
G
Zhou
D063147:Animal Distribution / Q000502:physiology*; D000818:Animals; D000852:Anopheles / Q000145:classification* / Q000502:physiology*; D002681:China; D005260:Female; D002052:Myanmar; D011157:Population Dynamics; D013045:Species Specificity