[Ecology of Culex pipiens fatigans larvae in an area of high endemicity of Bancroftian filariasis (author's transl)]

Abstract

Culex pipiens fatigans in the main vector of bancroftian filariasis in the Mayotte island (Comores) where it imposes an important health problem. The breeding-sites of C. p. fatigans are either man-made (latrines, cesspools, various containers), or natural (polluted water of estuaries of some rivers). The man-made breeding-sites are not similarly distributed in the different localities of the island. Their distribution varies according to the customs of the inhabitants, size and site of the community. They are mainly represented by latrines, where Anjouan ethnic group is predominent; by cesspools in localities inhabited by Sakalava (a Malagasian ethnic group) and by other latrines and cesspools in mahoraises (inhabitants of Mayotte) and cosmopolitan localities. In rural areas, the percentage of habitations with cesspools usually increases with the size of the villages. The various breeding-sites are primarily productive when they are built on a ground with poor permeability. The importance of the present information is further discussed with relation to the population dynamics of C.p. fatigans and to the measures which may be useful for a control program of this mosquito.