MOSQUITO (DIPTERA: CULICIDAE) AS A BIOINDICATOR OF ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH AND DISEASE OUTBREAK

Abstract

Quality of public health is greatly influenced by a lot of environmental factors, especially biotic factors among wich is a group of hematophagus mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae) showing high competence as disease vector(s). The vector mosquitoes belong to different species of different genera: *Anopheles, Aedes, Culex*, and *Mansonia.*In hypersensitive individuals, mosquito bites may induce pain and itching on the skin where the mosquito suck blood, allergic dermatitis leads up to dermatosis, even persistently, causing nuisance. Through the mosquito bites, man may risk to being infected with pathogens causing Malaria, Dengue Haemorrhagic Fever (DHF), Chikungunya, Japanese Encephalitis (JE), and Lymphatic filariasis, specifically in areas where the mosquito-borne disease (MBD) is (are) endemic. Survival of a mosquito vector species of disease vector is much dependent on its environment, mainly on the availability of a number of suitable habitats for its pre-adult stages, larvae and pupae. Number, type and size of the larval habitats as well as quality of water in the mosquito breeding places apparently determine rates of survival and density of the mosquito breeding in it which generally positively correlate with the increase of the MBD transmission. Therefore, mosquito mainly a disease vector could be used as one of the bioindicators of environment health and its significant increase in density is predictive of the probable occurrence of a MBD epidemic in a communityliving in an endemic area.