Studies on the bionomics of kala-azar vector in Madras city
Sivaprakasam, P.; Padmanabhan, B.; Sadanand, A.V.
Journal of Communicable Diseases 20(2): 111-117
1988
ISSN/ISBN: 0019-5138 PMID: 3241068 Document Number: 322398
Information on the sandfly fauna and its distribution in Tamil Nadu and other Southern States of India is scanty. The bionomics of the vector of Kala-azar namely Phlebotomus argentipes is an area where practically no work has been done in Madras city. Therefore, an attempt was made in the known Kala-Azar endemic areas of the city to elucidate some aspects of the bionomics of this species. Field study in a non-endemic rural area was done to compare the density and bionomics of the vector species iwth those in the endemic urban area. During the course of the present study, it was observed that P. argentipes constituted the most dominant sandfly fauna in the study areas. The other species were recorded included P. sergenti and P. papatasi. Only a few females of these two species recorded. The recording of P. argentipes var marginatus from Madras is a new finding. Another interesting observation has been the highly distorted sex ratio of P. argentipes in favour of the males i.e. 9 : 1.