STATUS OF MALARIA VECTORS IN ITALY

About 30 yr after malaria eradication, surveys to assess the presence and abundance of anopheline vectors were carried out in central and so uthern Italy and in the islands of Sardinia and Sicily from 1992 to 19 94. Anopheles labranchiae Falleroni was present in scattered foci in a ll regions, except for Tuscany, where it breeds almost exclusively in rice fields (Grosseto Province). Most common breeding sites were river s and streams, followed by ponds and ground pools. The highest adult d ensitiy was found in Tuscany near rice fields and along the west coast of Calabria. Anophelines in Grosseto were abundant at human bait, wit h peaks of >200 landings per human per night and vectorial capacity be tween 7.3 and 26 for Plasmodium falciparum and between 8.3 and 32.5 fo r Plasmodium vivax. Anopheles sacharovi Favre, a former malaria vector in Puglia and Sardinia, was not found in these regions. The other vec tor in southern Italy, Anopheles superpictus Grassi, was found at low densities on the western and eastern coasts of Calabria. All anophelin e populations were fully susceptible to deltamethrin, malathion, and D DT but showed reduced susceptibility to permethrin and propoxur. These data are discussed in the light of a possible reintroduction of malar ia into Italy.