Identificación de larvas de mosquitos (Diptera: Culicidae) de Mérida, Yucatán, México y sus principales criaderos

espanolIntroduccion. Entre los estudios que pueden aportar informacion base util en programas de control de mosquitos de importancia sanitaria, se recomienda mantener actualizado el inventario y la distribucion geografica de las especies, asi como conocer aspectos basicos de su bionomia en areas de transmision o de riesgo. Objetivos. Caracterizar la fauna de mosquitos y sus criaderos en la ciudad de Merida y presentar una clave para la identificacion de las especies encontradas en la ciudad. Material y Metodos. Se realizaron muestreos entomologicos en 1,160 casas de la zona urbana de Merida durante la estacion de lluvias de 2003. Los muestreos consistieron en inspecciones directas dentro y fuera de las casas para localizar recipientes con agua que pudieran ser potenciales criaderos de mosquitos y que albergaran inmaduros (larvas o pupas). Se elaboro una clave fotografica con los caracteres morfologicos de las especies identificadas en este trabajo. Resultados. Se colectaron 40,691 larvas y pupas de doce especies diferentes, siendo Aedes. aegypti la especie mas abundante (83% de los inmaduros colectados), seguida por Culex thriambus (6.92%) y Cx. quinquefasciatus (3.95%). De 41,352 contenedores revisados, solo el 11.9% contenia agua y, de estos, unicamente el 14% fueron positivos a larvas/pupas. Se caracterizaron 16 diferentes criaderos, la gran mayoria localizada en los patios y en sitios expuestos a la lluvia. Las cubetas (38% de los criaderos) albergaron el 75% de las especies de mosquitos colectados. Conclusion. Se documentaron doce especies de mosquitos en Merida, siendo Ae. aegypti la mas abundante, y las cubetas como los criaderos mas importantes en frecuencia y abundancia de mosquitos. (Rev Biomed 2007; 18:3-17) EnglishBackground. It is advisable for areas endemic for vector-borne-diseases, a permanent update of the species richness and geographical distribution of mosquitoes of sanitary importance. Objectives. To characterize the mosquito fauna and their breeding sites from Merida city and provide an identification key for the species found in the city. Material and Methods. Entomological surveys were carried out in 1,160 houses from the urban zone of Merida during the rainy season in 2003. The surveys consisted in direct inspections in both domestic and peridomestic sites to locate containers with water that could be potential breeding sites or harboring immatures (larvae and pupae). A photographic key was elaborated with the morphological characters of the species found in this study. Results. 40,691 larvae and pupae from twelve different species were collected, being Aedes aegypti the most abundant species (83% of immatures collected), followed by Culex thriambus (6.92%) and Cx. quinquefasciatus (3.95%). From 41,352 containers surveyed, only 11.9% had water, and from these only 14% were positive to larvae/pupae. Sixteen different breeding sites were characterized; they were mostly located in the backyards and exposed to rain. Buckets (38% of breeding sites) harbored 75% of the mosquitospecies collected. Conclusions. We report twelve mosquito species for Merida, Ae. aegypti was the most abundant, and the buckets were the most important breeding site due to their frequency and mosquito abundance breeding in them. (Rev Biomed 2007; 18:3-17)