title: Snail shells as larval habitat of Limatus durhamii (Diptera: Culicidae) in the Yungas of Argentina.
abstract: The shells of dead snails collect water from rainfalls producing aquatic microenvironments called gastrotelmata. These habitats are small and hold simple detritus based on animal communities, being rotifers and culicids the most studied. Although a high diversity of aquatic microhabitats has been reported as larval habitats of mosquitoes in Argentina, the shell of snails has not been investigated yet. We report the shells of three species of native Megalobulimus genus as larval habitats of a neotropical mosquito and suspected vector of bunyaviruses, Limatus durhamii, and describe these microhabitats in the Yungas forest of Argentina.
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Investigaciones en Energía No Convencional (INENCO, UNSa - CONICET), Av. Bolivia 5150, A4400FVY, Salta, Argentina; Instituto de Investigaciones en Enfermedades Tropicales, Sede Regional Orán, Universidad Nacional de Salta, Alvarado 751 Orán, 4530 Salta, Argentina. Electronic address: cmangudo@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Carolina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Mangudo
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Limnología "Dr. Raúl A. Ringuelet", Universidad Nacional de La Plata - CONICET, CCT La Plata, Boulevard 120 y 62 - Casilla de Correo N° 712, 1900, La Plata, Buenos Aires, Argentina. Electronic address: rcampos@ilpla.edu.ar.
authors.forename: Raúl E
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Campos
authors.affiliation: CEPAVE-Centro de Estudios Parasitológicos y de Vectores CCT La Plata, Argentina. Electronic address: gustavo@cepave.edu.ar.
authors.forename: Gustavo C
authors.initials: GC
authors.lastname: Rossi
authors.affiliation: Centro de Relevamiento y Evaluación de Recursos Agrícolas y Naturales-IMBIV (CONICET-UNC), Facultad de Ciencias Agropecuarias, Av. Valparaíso sn, 5016, Córdoba, Argentina; Cátedra de Ecología, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Físicas y Naturales, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, Córdoba, Argentina. Electronic address: raquel.gleiser@unc.edu.ar.
authors.forename: Raquel M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Gleiser
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001118:Argentina; D009033:Culicidae / Q000145:classification / Q000254:growth & development*; D017753:Ecosystem; D007814:Larva / Q000254:growth & development*; D012908:Snails
keywords: Culicidae; Gastrotelmata; Larval habitat; Megalobulimus; Microhabitat