Population dynamics of indoor sampled mosquitoes and their implication in disease transmission in Abeokuta, south-western Nigeria

Background & objectives: A longitudinal study was carried out to investigate the speciescomposition, seasonal abundance, parity and feeding preference of indoor sampled mosquitoes inAbeokuta, south-western Nigeria.Methods: The mosquitoes were sampled weekly from five stratified locations using Center forDisease Control (CDC) light-traps between August 2005 and July 2006. The mosquitoes wereexamined for abdominal condition and dissected for age composition. Microscopic and precipitintechniques were also employed for the determination of host blood source.Results: A total of 2969 mosquitoes which belong to 10 species of mosquitoes were collectedduring the study period. Mansonia africana (35.65%) constituted the most abundant species followedby Culex quinquefasciatus (32.23%) and Anopheles gambiae complex (13.52%). Other species indecreasing order of abundance were Coquilletidia maculipennis (8.2%), Aedes albopictus (5.9%),Ae. aegypti (1.93%), M. uniformis (1.81%), Cx. duttoni (0.25%), Cx. tigripes (0.25%) and An.funestus (0.25%). Seasonal abundance revealed a significant difference (p <0.05) in the populationof mosquito vectors collected during the wet season as compared to the dry season and theirabundance was positively correlated with rainfall. The results showed that the majority of thevector species collected were unfed and nulliparous. Moreover, the blood meal test was positive forhuman blood.Conclusion: The preponderance of mosquitoes observed in the study is of public health concernsince they serve as vectors of most tropical diseases including malaria