Abundance and Distribution of <i>Phlebotomus pedifer</i> (Diptera: Psychodidae) Across Various Habitat Types in Endemic Foci of Cutaneous Leishmaniasis in the Mid-Highlands of Wolaita Zone, Southern Ethiopia

<i>Phlebotomus pedifer</i> is a vector of <i>Leishmania aethiopica</i>, the causative agent of cutaneous leishmaniasis. This study assessed the abundance and distribution of <i>P. pedifer</i> in different habitats and human houses situated at varying distances fro...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Bereket Alemayehu, Temesgen Tomas, Negese Koroto, Teshome Matusala, Aberham Megaze, Herwig Leirs
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2024-12-01
Series:Tropical Medicine and Infectious Disease
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2414-6366/9/12/302
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1846102520528633856
author Bereket Alemayehu
Temesgen Tomas
Negese Koroto
Teshome Matusala
Aberham Megaze
Herwig Leirs
author_facet Bereket Alemayehu
Temesgen Tomas
Negese Koroto
Teshome Matusala
Aberham Megaze
Herwig Leirs
author_sort Bereket Alemayehu
collection DOAJ
description <i>Phlebotomus pedifer</i> is a vector of <i>Leishmania aethiopica</i>, the causative agent of cutaneous leishmaniasis. This study assessed the abundance and distribution of <i>P. pedifer</i> in different habitats and human houses situated at varying distances from hyrax (reservoir host) dwellings, in Wolaita Zone, southern Ethiopia. Sandflies were collected from January 2020 to December 2021 using CDC light traps, sticky paper traps, and locally made emergence traps. Sampling was performed in human houses, peri-domestic areas, farmlands, and hyrax dwellings. Houses 200 m and 400 m from hyrax dwellings were selected to study whether distance affects indoor sandfly abundance. A total of 2485 sandflies were captured, with <i>P. pedifer</i> accounting for 86.1% of the catch and <i>Sergentomyia</i> spp. comprising the remaining 13.9%. The abundance of <i>P. pedifer</i> was highest in human houses (72.3%) and lowest in farmlands (4.0%). Temperature showed a positive correlation with sandfly abundance (r = 0.434, <i>p</i> = 0.000), while rainfall (r = −0.424, <i>p</i> = 0.001) and humidity (r = −0.381, <i>p</i> = 0.001) were negatively correlated with abundance. Houses near hyrax dwellings had significantly higher <i>P. pedifer</i> abundance compared to those further away. Soil-emergence trapping yielded only a few <i>P. pedifer</i> specimens, primarily from hyrax dwellings. The findings highlight the increased presence of <i>P. pedifer</i> indoors, particularly in houses close to hyrax habitats, emphasizing the need for targeted indoor vector control strategies to mitigate the risk of cutaneous leishmaniasis transmission.
format Article
id doaj-art-b8269bf4e97d457d936eaa8bdcb07cf9
institution Kabale University
issn 2414-6366
language English
publishDate 2024-12-01
publisher MDPI AG
record_format Article
series Tropical Medicine and Infectious Disease
spelling doaj-art-b8269bf4e97d457d936eaa8bdcb07cf92024-12-27T14:57:11ZengMDPI AGTropical Medicine and Infectious Disease2414-63662024-12-0191230210.3390/tropicalmed9120302Abundance and Distribution of <i>Phlebotomus pedifer</i> (Diptera: Psychodidae) Across Various Habitat Types in Endemic Foci of Cutaneous Leishmaniasis in the Mid-Highlands of Wolaita Zone, Southern EthiopiaBereket Alemayehu0Temesgen Tomas1Negese Koroto2Teshome Matusala3Aberham Megaze4Herwig Leirs5Department of Biology, College of Natural and Computational Sciences, Wolaita Sodo University, Wolaita Sodo P.O. Box 138, EthiopiaDepartment of Biology, College of Natural and Computational Sciences, Wolaita Sodo University, Wolaita Sodo P.O. Box 138, EthiopiaDepartment of Biology, College of Natural and Computational Sciences, Wolaita Sodo University, Wolaita Sodo P.O. Box 138, EthiopiaDepartment of Geography, College of Social Sciences, Wolaita Sodo University, Wolaita Sodo P.O. Box 138, EthiopiaDepartment of Biology, College of Natural and Computational Sciences, Wolaita Sodo University, Wolaita Sodo P.O. Box 138, EthiopiaEvolutionary Ecology Group, Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, Campus Drie Eiken, Universiteitsplein 1, Wilrijk, 2610 Antwerp, Belgium<i>Phlebotomus pedifer</i> is a vector of <i>Leishmania aethiopica</i>, the causative agent of cutaneous leishmaniasis. This study assessed the abundance and distribution of <i>P. pedifer</i> in different habitats and human houses situated at varying distances from hyrax (reservoir host) dwellings, in Wolaita Zone, southern Ethiopia. Sandflies were collected from January 2020 to December 2021 using CDC light traps, sticky paper traps, and locally made emergence traps. Sampling was performed in human houses, peri-domestic areas, farmlands, and hyrax dwellings. Houses 200 m and 400 m from hyrax dwellings were selected to study whether distance affects indoor sandfly abundance. A total of 2485 sandflies were captured, with <i>P. pedifer</i> accounting for 86.1% of the catch and <i>Sergentomyia</i> spp. comprising the remaining 13.9%. The abundance of <i>P. pedifer</i> was highest in human houses (72.3%) and lowest in farmlands (4.0%). Temperature showed a positive correlation with sandfly abundance (r = 0.434, <i>p</i> = 0.000), while rainfall (r = −0.424, <i>p</i> = 0.001) and humidity (r = −0.381, <i>p</i> = 0.001) were negatively correlated with abundance. Houses near hyrax dwellings had significantly higher <i>P. pedifer</i> abundance compared to those further away. Soil-emergence trapping yielded only a few <i>P. pedifer</i> specimens, primarily from hyrax dwellings. The findings highlight the increased presence of <i>P. pedifer</i> indoors, particularly in houses close to hyrax habitats, emphasizing the need for targeted indoor vector control strategies to mitigate the risk of cutaneous leishmaniasis transmission.https://www.mdpi.com/2414-6366/9/12/302phlebotomine sandflies<i>Phlebotomus pedifer</i><i>Leishmania aethiopica</i>leishmaniasishabitat preferencesWolaita Zone
spellingShingle Bereket Alemayehu
Temesgen Tomas
Negese Koroto
Teshome Matusala
Aberham Megaze
Herwig Leirs
Abundance and Distribution of <i>Phlebotomus pedifer</i> (Diptera: Psychodidae) Across Various Habitat Types in Endemic Foci of Cutaneous Leishmaniasis in the Mid-Highlands of Wolaita Zone, Southern Ethiopia
Tropical Medicine and Infectious Disease
phlebotomine sandflies
<i>Phlebotomus pedifer</i>
<i>Leishmania aethiopica</i>
leishmaniasis
habitat preferences
Wolaita Zone
title Abundance and Distribution of <i>Phlebotomus pedifer</i> (Diptera: Psychodidae) Across Various Habitat Types in Endemic Foci of Cutaneous Leishmaniasis in the Mid-Highlands of Wolaita Zone, Southern Ethiopia
title_full Abundance and Distribution of <i>Phlebotomus pedifer</i> (Diptera: Psychodidae) Across Various Habitat Types in Endemic Foci of Cutaneous Leishmaniasis in the Mid-Highlands of Wolaita Zone, Southern Ethiopia
title_fullStr Abundance and Distribution of <i>Phlebotomus pedifer</i> (Diptera: Psychodidae) Across Various Habitat Types in Endemic Foci of Cutaneous Leishmaniasis in the Mid-Highlands of Wolaita Zone, Southern Ethiopia
title_full_unstemmed Abundance and Distribution of <i>Phlebotomus pedifer</i> (Diptera: Psychodidae) Across Various Habitat Types in Endemic Foci of Cutaneous Leishmaniasis in the Mid-Highlands of Wolaita Zone, Southern Ethiopia
title_short Abundance and Distribution of <i>Phlebotomus pedifer</i> (Diptera: Psychodidae) Across Various Habitat Types in Endemic Foci of Cutaneous Leishmaniasis in the Mid-Highlands of Wolaita Zone, Southern Ethiopia
title_sort abundance and distribution of i phlebotomus pedifer i diptera psychodidae across various habitat types in endemic foci of cutaneous leishmaniasis in the mid highlands of wolaita zone southern ethiopia
topic phlebotomine sandflies
<i>Phlebotomus pedifer</i>
<i>Leishmania aethiopica</i>
leishmaniasis
habitat preferences
Wolaita Zone
url https://www.mdpi.com/2414-6366/9/12/302
work_keys_str_mv AT bereketalemayehu abundanceanddistributionofiphlebotomuspediferidipterapsychodidaeacrossvarioushabitattypesinendemicfociofcutaneousleishmaniasisinthemidhighlandsofwolaitazonesouthernethiopia
AT temesgentomas abundanceanddistributionofiphlebotomuspediferidipterapsychodidaeacrossvarioushabitattypesinendemicfociofcutaneousleishmaniasisinthemidhighlandsofwolaitazonesouthernethiopia
AT negesekoroto abundanceanddistributionofiphlebotomuspediferidipterapsychodidaeacrossvarioushabitattypesinendemicfociofcutaneousleishmaniasisinthemidhighlandsofwolaitazonesouthernethiopia
AT teshomematusala abundanceanddistributionofiphlebotomuspediferidipterapsychodidaeacrossvarioushabitattypesinendemicfociofcutaneousleishmaniasisinthemidhighlandsofwolaitazonesouthernethiopia
AT aberhammegaze abundanceanddistributionofiphlebotomuspediferidipterapsychodidaeacrossvarioushabitattypesinendemicfociofcutaneousleishmaniasisinthemidhighlandsofwolaitazonesouthernethiopia
AT herwigleirs abundanceanddistributionofiphlebotomuspediferidipterapsychodidaeacrossvarioushabitattypesinendemicfociofcutaneousleishmaniasisinthemidhighlandsofwolaitazonesouthernethiopia