© The Authors 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com Journal of Medical Entomology, 54(6), 2017, 1758–1766 doi: 10.1093/jme/tjx169 Advance Access Publication Date: 6 September 2017 Research article 1758 Vector-Borne Diseases, Surveillance, Prevention Population Dynamics and Plasmodium falciparum (Haemosporida: Plasmodiidae) Infectivity Rates for the Malaria Vector Anopheles arabiensis (Diptera: Culicidae) at Mamfene, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa Leonard C. Dandalo, 1,2 Basil D. Brooke, 1,2 Givemore Munhenga, 1,2,6 Leanne N. Lobb, 1,2 Jabulani Zikhali, 1 Sifso P. Ngxongo, 3 Phineas M. Zikhali, 3 Sipho Msimang, 3 Oliver R. Wood, 1,2 Mohlominyana Mofokeng, 1,2 Eunice Misiani, 4 Tobias Chirwa, 5 and Lizette L. Koekemoer 1,2 1 Wits Research Institute for Malaria, MRC Collaborating Centre for Multi-Disciplinary Research on Malaria, School of Pathology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa, 2 Center for Emerging Zoonotic & Parasitic Diseases, National Institute for Communicable Diseases, Johannesburg, Sandringham 2131, South Africa, 3 Environmental Health, Malaria and Communicable Disease Control, KwaZulu-Natal Department of Health, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa, 4 National Department of Health, Private Bag X828, Pretoria, South Africa, 5 School of Public Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa, and 6 Corresponding author, e-mail: givemorem@nicd.ac.za Subject Editor: Douglas Norris Received 5 January 2017; Editorial decision 22 July 2017 Abstract Anopheles arabiensis (Patton; Diptera: Culicidae) is a major malaria vector in the southern African region. In South Africa, effective control of this species using indoor-based interventions is reduced owing to its tendency to rest outdoors. As South Africa moves towards malaria elimination there is a need for complementary vector control strategies. One of the methods under consideration is the use of the sterile insect technique (SIT). Key to the successful implementation of an SIT programme is prior knowledge of the size and spatial distribution of the target population. Understanding mosquito population dynamics for both males and females is critical for ef fcient programme implementation. It is thus necessary to use outdoor-based population monitoring tools capable of sampling both sexes of the target population. In this project mosquito surveillance and evaluation of tools capable of collecting both genders were carried out at Mamfene in northern KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa, during the period January 2014 to December 2015. Outdoor- and indoor-resting Anopheles mosquitoes were sampled in three sections of Mamfene over the 2-yr sampling period using modifed plastic buckets, clay pots and window exit traps. Morphological and molecular techniques were used for species identifcations of all samples. Wild-caught adult females were tested for Plasmodium falciparum (Welch; Haemosporida: Plasmodiidae) infectivity. Out of 1,705 mosquitoes collected, 1,259 (73.8%) and 255 (15%) were identifed as members of either the Anopheles gambiae complex or Anopheles funestus group respectively. An. arabiensis was the most abundant species contributing 78.8% of identifed specimens. Mosquito density was highest in summer and lowest during winter. Clay pots yielded 16.3 mosquitoes per trap compared to 10.5 for modifed plastic buckets over the 2-yr sampling period. P. falciparum infection rates for An. arabiensis were 0.7% and 0.5% for 2014 and 2015, respectively. Logistic regression analysis showed an association between An. arabiensis catches with Section and season of collection but not with sex and collection methods. These data confrmed the presence of a perennial An. arabiensis population at Mamfene and constitute the frst records of P. falciparum infective An. arabiensis from South Africa, confrming this species as a major vector in the malaria endemic provinces of the country. Key words: vector incrimination, entomological surveillance, clay pot, residual malaria, sterile insect technique Malaria remains a public health concern in South Africa despite years of active control carried out by the provincial departments of health (Coetzee et al. 2013). The disease is still endemic in the north-eastern areas of KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga and Limpopo provinces. In 2015, a total of 11,276 malaria cases were offcially recorded. Of these 41% were locally acquired (Misiani, personal communication), Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/jme/article/54/6/1758/4106311 by guest on 14 July 2022