Biting and resting behavior of Anopheles darlingi in the Suriname rainforest

Abstract

An experimental hut study was conducted on the biting and house resting behavior of Anopheles darlingi in the rainforest of Suriname. Of all anophelines collected on human bait at indoor and peridomestic sites, An. darlingi comprised 100% and 98%, respectively. A single peak in biting activity occurred around 2300 h. With hourly exit trap collections, a peak of exit from the hut was observed at sunrise. Of these mosquitoes, 91% were freshly fed. The indoor resting period was calculated to be about 4 h. When the human bait in the hut was protected by a mosquito net, only 18% of the exiting mosquitoes were fed and the resting period was about 3 h.