Open AccessSurveillance entomologique des <em>Culicoides</em> (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae), vecteurs de la fièvre catarrhale en Tunisie
Author(s) -
Soufien Sghaier,
Salah Hammami,
H Hammami,
A. Dkhil,
Jean Claude Delécolle
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
revue d'élevage et de médecine vétérinaire des pays tropicaux/revue d'élevage et de médecine vétérinaire des pays tropicaux
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1951-6711
pISSN - 0035-1865
DOI - 10.19182/remvt.10047
Subject(s) - ceratopogonidae , culicoides , outbreak , biology , veterinary medicine , serotype , population , geography , vector (molecular biology) , zoology , virology , demography , medicine , biochemistry , sociology , gene , recombinant dna
Bluetongue (BT) is an arboviral disease that affects ruminants. BT virus is transmitted by biting midges of the genus Culicoides (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae). Since 1999, BTV outbreaks have occurred in Tunisia and two serotypes (BTV-2 and BTV-1) have been involved in 2000 and 2006, respectively. Entomological surveillance has been implemented in Tunisia with the aim to study population dynamics of C. imicola and other potential vectors. Two-night catches of midges per site were performed monthly from June 2006 through July 2008 on 14 sites throughout the country. A total of 11,582 Culicoides specimens, collected from 336 light traps, comprised 25 species of which seven were identified for the first time in Tunisia. The seasonal occurrence of these species is described.