Species composition, spatio-temporal variation and habitat characterization of Anopheline larvae in Bure district, northwestern Ethiopia

In Ethiopia, mosquito larva control interventions are given less emphasis due to a number of factors including lack of precise information on potential breeding habitats and complicated vector biology. Hence, the objective of this study was to assess the spatio-temporal variation and habitat characterization of Anopheline larvae in Bure district, Northwestern Ethiopia. Longitudinal larval sampling was done in 3 villages (Bukta, Workimdr and Shnebekuma) for a year (July 2015 - June, 2016). Sampling was done one time per month. Documentation of habitat type and environmental characteristics were done in each round of sampling. A total of 3490 Anophelines larvae were collected in a year. Seven larval species were identified morphologically: Anopheles gambiae s.l, An. funestus s.l, An. pharoensis. An. demeilloni, An. coustani, An. squamosus, An. cinereus. Of these, An. demeilloni (1.97 ± 0.03) and An. gambiae s. l (1.79 ± 0.06) were the predominant larvae, whereas An. pharoensis (0.18 ± 0.04) was the least representative (p < 0.01). Anophelines larvae were found in various breading habitats, but the mean density of Anophelines larvae in dam- edge (0.45 ± 0. 19) was relatively smaller than other habitats (p < 0.01). The large densities of An. gambiae s.l and An. funestus s.l larvae were sampled from natural, permanent and temporary aquatic habitats that had clean and standing water, without mats of algae, vegetation’s and plants. Multiple linear regression analysis showed that only standing water was found to be the main predictor of the density of An. gambiae s.l density (R2 = 0.457; p < 0.016). In conclusion, the larvae of the two most important malaria vectors of Ethiopia, An. gambiae and An. funestus s.l, were collected through the year.