Mosquito Studies in the Panama Canal Zone During 1949 and 1950 (Diptera, Culicidae)

Abstract

Mosquito control was a problem of major consideration during the construction of the Panama Canal and has since continued to receive much attention from personnel responsible for the maintenance and defense of the Canal. The accomplishments in malaria control in the Canal Zone would indeed constitute one of the brightest chapters in a history of modern preventive medicine. At this time there is no complete work on the mosquito fauna of this vital area. Howard, Dyar and Knab (1912-1917) and Dyar (1925 and 1928) include systematic treatments of the Culicidae known for the area at the time of these publications. Since then there has been published only occasional descriptions of new species and notes, except for The Anopheline Mosquitoes of The Caribbean Region by Komp (1942), Note,e on Distribution and Bionomics of Panama Mosquitoes by Arnett (1947-1950) and Studies on Forest Mosquitoes in Panama by Galindo et at., (1949, 1950 and 1951). This present paper includes a summary of the mosquitoes collected and identified by personnel of the 25th Preventive Medicine Survey Detachment while engaged in work on Army posts located in both the Atlantic and Pacific sectors of the Canal Zone during 1949 and 1950. Collections were made throughout the dry and wet seasons of both years. The dry season in the Canal Zone usually extends -from December to May and the wet season extends from May to December.