Feeding Rate and Reproductive Performance of Three Mosquito Species as Influenced by Different Blood Meal Sources

The present study evaluated the effect of different blood meal sources (human volunteer, pigeon, guinea pig and Egyptian mastigure) on feeding rate and reproductive performance of laboratory colonizedCulex pipiens L., Anopheles sergentii Theobald and Culex antennatus Becker mosquitoes during two sequential gonotrophic cycles. The obtained results showed that, mosquitoes tested exhibited a special feeding rate to human blood, as the mosquitoes fed on human blood exhibited higher feeding, fecundity and fertility rates than those fed on either type of blood sources. Concerning with feeding rates, the highest percentages of engorged females during a first blood meal (82.3, 88.1 and 86.3) were recorded when Cx. pipiens, An. sergentii and Cx. antennatus females fed on the pigeon and human hosts. Meanwhile, the highest percentages of engorged females during second blood meal (88.4, 93.5 and 92.7) occurred when Cx. pipiens, An. sergentii and Cx. antennatus females fed on the human host, respectively. Also, fecundity and fertility rates of mosquitos fed on different hosts were varied between gonotrophic cycles, as at the first gonotrophic cycle fecundity and fertility of tested mosquitoes were greater than those at the second gonotrophic cycle. In addition, feeding on human blood recorded higher fecundity and fertility rates in tested mosquito species as compared with feeding on other hosts.