title: Preliminary study on 2 colour patterns in Ochlerotatus caspius (Pallas, 1771) (Diptera, Culicidae).
abstract: Ochlerotatus caspius is a mosquito of medical and veterinary relevance both for its synanthropy and for its potential role in transmission of viruses and nematodes in the areas that it inhabits. Due to its wide range and the marked variability in the adult colour pattern, some authors have recognized Ochlerotatus caspius as a complex of species. In this study, we purposed to evaluate the possible taxonomic heterogeneity between 2 chromatic forms by using both morphological and molecular approaches. The preliminary results based on the identity of the rRNA internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS-2) lead us to believe the 2 forms as a single species with a chromatic polymorphism.
authors.affiliation: Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena 299, 00161 Roma, Italy.
authors.forename: Luciano
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Toma
authors.forename: Francesco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Severini
authors.forename: Roberto
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Romi
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Di Luca