Distribution And Seasonal Abundance Of Anopheline Mosquito Species In Nguru, Yobe State, North-Eastern Nigeria

Abstract

The essence of this study was to identify Anopheles mosquito species in Nguru, Yobe State and to determine their distribution and relative abundance in the months of the year. Insecticide and aspirator were used to collect mosqutoes in human dwellngs and preserved in 2% formalin for identcation using dissectng microscope. Anopheles gambiae (1145); Anopheles funestus (1220) and Anopheles arabiensis (827) were the major anopheline species prevalent in the town. The results obtained showed that An. gambiae were mostly abundant in wet months, followed by Anopheles funestus at the end of the rainy season, and Anopheles arabiensis in drier months. Based on the observation of Anopheles monthly distributon and supported data on malaria prevalence, the three species seem to complement one another and sustain the endemcity of malaria in the town. The study demonstrates the occurrence of malaria vectors all year round due to the favourable environmental conditions associated with Nigerian arid zone.

Keywords: Malaria, Mosquito species, Distribution, Prevalence, Seasons, Arid savanna zone, Nigeria