Daily survival and human blood index of Anopheles sinensis, the vector species of malaria in Korea

To evaluate the vector efficiency of Anopheles sinensis in transmitting viv ax malaria in the northern part of Gyonggi-do, South Korea, daily survival and feeding host preferences were studied during the period of June-October 1999. Ovaries of unfed and freshly fed An. sinensis females were dissected and parity or nulliparity were observed. The parous rates were 75.2% in Ju ly, 56.5% in August, 78.5% in September, and 60.0% in October at Gusan-dong , Goyang-si, Gyonggi-do. The average probability of daily survival was 0.89 0. To determine the host feeding patterns of An. sinensis, outdoor-resting bloodfed mosquitoes were collected, and the sources of the blood meals were analyzed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, using 6 different animal im munoglobulin G antibodies. Out of 305 blood meals tested, 0.7% were positiv e from humans, 89.8% from bovines, 3.3% from swine, 0.7% from dogs, 1.6% fr om chickens, and 0.7% from bovines and swine mixed. No blood meals were pos itive from mice. Though the vector efficiency of An. sinensis was poor beca use of a low human blood index and a moderate rate of daily survival, vecto rial capacity would be high because of high density of the population.