Resting habits of Anopheles arabiensis in the Awash river valley of Ethiopia

The indoor- and outdoor-resting habits of Anopheles arabiensis were studied over 2 years in central Ethiopia. Pyrethrum-spray catches and outlet-window-trap collections were carried out in both DDT-sprayed village huts and unsprayed huts. Mosquitoes were also collected from pit shelters and natural outdoor-resting sites. Females were marked and released in order to investigate their daytime-resting sites in sprayed and unsprayed huts. The An. arabiensis population in the study area is partially (37.5%) exophilic, while those females resting indoors tend to avoid DDT-sprayed surfaces and thus their contact with the insecticide is minimized.