Mapping mosquito larval densities and assessing area vulnerable to diseases transmission in Nile valley of Giza, Egypt

Abstract

Diversity and abundance of mosquito larvae have significant impact on the dynamics of disease transmission. In the present study, remote sensing (RS) technology integrated with field survey and spatial analyses were utilized to map mosquito breeding habitats and assess areas vulnerable to disease transmission in the Nile Valley of Giza governorate. An entomological survey was carried out to 20 accessible breeding sites at the study area during the period 6th–9th December 2019. Mosquito larvae were collected and transferred to the laboratory for density calculation and species identifications. A calibrated Landsat OLI image was processed to produce Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), Normalized Difference Built-Up Index (NDBI), Normalized Difference Moisture Index (NDMI), Normalized Difference Water Index (NDWI), Normalized Difference Salinity Index (NDSI), and Land Surface Temperature (LST). Results revealed that Culex pipiens was the most dominant species in the study region with a total percentage of 95.04%. High density of mosquito larvae was characterized by NDVI 0.12 to 0.39, NDBI − 0.20 to 0.05, NDMI − 0.05 to 0.20, NDWI − 0.34 to − 0.10, NDSI − 0.39 to − 0.12, and LST 19.30 to 24.82 ℃ which represents the optimal conditions for mosquito breeding. It could be concluded that Giza region, particularly Agouza, Kerdasa, Dokki, Bulaq Dakror and Omrania, is highly affected by Cx. pipiens, with a high potentiality of filariasis disease transmission.