Distribution and Seasonal Abundance of Culex quinquefasciatus and Aedes albopictus (Diptera: Culicidae) Populations in Central Texas, USA

Abstract

Mosquito surveillance was carried out in Central Texas to examine the effects of meteorological and environmental factors on Culex quinquefasciatus and Aedes albopictus populations and to investigate the species’ infection status with West Nile virus, chikungunya virus, and Zika virus. Ten trapping sites in the central and suburban areas were selected to monitor any alteration in the mosquito population in every two to three-week period from April 2016 to October 2017. The seasonal monitoring showed that the Cx. quinquefasciatus population, but not Ae. alpopictus population, was highly affected by precipitation while the variable of subarea had no effect on the mosquito abundance. West Nile virus, chikungunya virus, and Zika virus were not detected in the sampled mosquitoes in Central Texas.