VPA 221: Veterinary Entomology and Acarology (1+1)

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ANOPHELINE AND CULICINE MOSQUITOES

Character	Anophelines	Culicines
Genus and species	Genus  : Anopheles Species: A. stephensi	Genus: Culex Species: C. fatigans Genus: Aedes Species: A. aegypti
Common Names	Anopheles is referred to as the dappled mosquito due to the presence of dappling on the wings	Aedes is called the tiger mosquito due to the presence of white bands at the leg joints
Difference in the adults
Resting Posture     Morphology Head –Mouthparts Male   Female	Rests at an angle to the surface. The proboscis is held forward, thus proboscis and abdomen are in a straight line   Maxillary palp is as long as the proboscis and has a club shaped appearance   Maxillary palp as long as the proboscis	Rests with the abdomen parallel to the surface while the proboscis is bent down. So abdomen and proboscis are at an angle to one another    Maxillary palp as long as the proboscis and not clubbed   Maxillary palp is short and is one third the length of the proboscis
Antenna
Thorax Scutellum     ·         Wings     ·         Legs      Abdomen       Habits	·    Unilobed and crescent shaped Accumulation of scales at the anterior border of the wing giving it a dappled appearance  No white bands at the joints of legs   Last abdominal segment is broad and rounded at the tip   Fly almost a mile from their breeding areas, anthrophilic, nocturnal biter, painful bites and prefer the ankle of man and in animals the fetlock region	·         Trilobed    ·         No dappling     White bands are seen at the joints of legs in the case of the Aedes alone  Last abdominal segment is narrow and pointed   While Culex spp. Can fly more than a mile from the breeding place Aedes spp. do not fly far from their breeding area. The bites of the culicines are not so painful as that of the anophelines. They are ornithophilic in addition to being anthrophilic
Difference in the lifecycle
Breeding areas	Prefer fresh water such as running water, rain water, water used for irrigation purposes, streams, lakes etc.,	Culex spp. oviposit in dirty, contaminated water such as those in the drains, cess pit, ditches etc., Aedes spp.usually prefers water held in containers, such as tanks, water stored in buckets, rain water in the tree holes, tyres, tins, pots etc.,
Egg           Larvae            Pupae	Laid single, boat shaped with lateral floats and frills One female can lay 40-100 eggs at a time          Absence of siphon tube Larvae lie parallel to the water surface with the respiratory fossa applied to the water surface. Palmate hairs present on the body segments enable the larvae to float parallel to the water surface. Green in colour  Breathing trumpets are short and broad. Abdominal segments with palmate hairs. Cephalothorax close to the 1st abdominal segment	Culex spp. lays eggs in masses. The eggs are arranged vertically with the pointed end towards the surface of the water. Its referred to as the “Egg raft” A female can lay around 200-600 eggs at a time. Aedes spp. lays single eggs. The eggs are cylindrical and reticulated   Siphon tube is long and conical in Culex spp.and it’s short in Aedes spp. Larvae hang down vertically from the water surface.    Palmate hairs are absent. Pecten is present, its short in the case of Culex spp. while in Aedes spp. its long. A larva of Culex spp. is smaller than the Aedes spp. Breathing trumpets are long and narrow. No palmate hairs. Cephalothorax away from the abdominal segment
Difference in the vector potentiality
Man           Animals	Human malaria(caused by Plasmodium falciparum, P.vivax, P.ovale etc.,)         ·         Dirofilaria immitis in dogs Setaria digitata in cattle	Filariasis in man caused by Wuchereria bancrofti, Brugia malayi. Culex spp. is responsible for the transmission of Japanese B encephalitis virus in children which causes brain fever. Aedes spp is involved in the transmission of Yellow fever virus, dengue, haemorraghic fever, Rift valley fever virus, Chikungunya fever virus   Both the genus are involved in transmission of Dirofilaria immitis in dogs, Setaria digitata in cattle, Eastern equine encephalitis virus and St.Louis encephalitis virus

 

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