The taxonomic catalog of the Brazilian fauna: biodiversity and geographical distribution of Triatominae (Hemiptera: Reduviidae) in Brazil

Abstract

ABSTRACT The members of the subfamily Triatominae (Heteroptera, Reduviidae) are important because they feed on vertebrate blood, acting as vectors of Trypanosoma cruzi (Chagas, 1909), the protozoan that causes Chagas disease or American trypanosomiasis. There are currently 158 species, 155 extant and three extinct species, within 18 genera and five tribes in Triatominae. The sustainable control of the vector transmission of Chagas disease closely relies on the availability of data on the triatomine species present in a specific region, their distribution patterns, the natural infection rate of T. cruzi, synanthropic tendencies, and ecobiological characteristics. The taxonomic catalog of the Brazilian fauna (CTFB) is an online platform available at http://fauna.jbrj.gov.br, which brings taxonomic information on Brazilian fauna. Based on information from the platform, in the present paper, a checklist of genera and 64 currently known Brazilian species is given, as well as updated geographic distribution information. We provide a summary of each species’ public health importance, drawing from relevant literature.

Keywords

• Chagas disease vectors
• taxonomy