Seasonal Variations in the Proportions of Mosquitoes Feeding on Mammals and Birds at a Heronry in Western Kenya

The seasonal shift in feeding patterns in mosquitoes of the Kisumu area was studied by regular aspirator collections of mosquitoes from beneath trees containing nesting birds. Throughout 1975 data were also collected on rodent and other animal populations in the area. Thirty mosquito species (31,445 females) were collected. Identification of blood meals by the precipitin test showed that Culex univittatus gp. mosquitoes were the principal species feeding on birds and that when nesting birds were absent, bovids and rodents were fed on to a considerable extent. The widely catholic tastes of this particular speciesgroup and its known involvement in arbovirus transmission in southern Africa make these mosquitoes potential vectors in East Africa.