Lutzomyia wellcomei Fraiha, Shaw & Lainson (Diptera, Psychodidae, Phlebotominae) em Fragmento de Mata Atlântica do Rio Grande do Norte, Nordeste do Brasil

Abstract

Abstract. Leishmaniasis can affect humans and animals in visceral or cutaneous forms. The cutaneous form has been associated, among other species, with Lutzomyia wellcomei Fraiha, Shaw & Lainson, initially found in the Amazon region. The present study is based on monthly collections from January to December in an Atlantic Forest remnant and a peridomestic environment, using CDC light traps. This is the first systematized study of the specie in Rio Grande do Norte State. The insects were metalized under carbon tape, visualized and photographed with a scanning electron microscope. The most abundant species in the forest area was Lutzomyia walkeri Newstead followed by L. wellcomei. Of the total captured in the forest and the peridomestic environment, around 8% were L. wellcomei, the predominant species in the forest environment in the rainy season. L. wellcomei sandflies were not captured in the peridomestic environment. In the forest this species was found along with Lutzomyia whitmani Antunes & Coutinho and Lutzomyia intermedia Lutz & Neiva. Male and female Lutzomyia longipalpis Lutz & Neiva were predominant in the peridomestic environment. Microscopic analysis of the external morphology of L. wellcomei reveals details of male and female heads.

An ecological study of sand flies (Diptera: Psychodidae) in the vicinity of Lençóis Maranhenses National Park, Maranhão, Brazil

“…Along with L. whitmani and L. intermedia, L. wellcomei has been recognized as a vector of L. braziliensis in wild settings of northeastern Brazil [ 44 ]. Since L. wellcomei occurs almost exusively during the rainy season and maintains the typical behavior of a wild species [ 45 ], it was classified as an accessory species in the present study.…”

Sand flies (Diptera, Psychodidae, Phlebotominae), vectors of Leishmania protozoa, at an Atlantic Forest Conservation Unit in the municipality of Nísia Floresta, Rio Grande do Norte state, Brazil

“…P. wellcomei , the third most abundant species in this study, was initially found in the Brazilian Amazon [ 39 ] and later in the Northeast, in forests in Ceará state [ 33 ], forest and peridomiciliary environments in Maranhão state [ 13 , 40 ], and in forest environments of metropolitan regions in the states of Pernambuco [ 35 ] and Rio Grande do Norte [ 15 ].…”

“…ATL exhibits different causative agents and vectors, depending on the region of the country [ 5 – 12 ]. Among the sand flies considered vectors of ATL in Brazil, Nyssomyia whitmani, Nyssomyia intermedia , Nyssomyia umbratilis , Migonemyia migonei, Psychodopygus complexa and Psychodopygus wellcomei occur in the Northeast [ 6 , 12 – 15 ]. Effective measures to control the vectors are increasingly necessary.…”