Surveillance Studies Reveal Diverse and Potentially Pathogenic-Incriminated Vector Mosquito Species across Major Botswana Touristic Hotspots

Abstract

Vector mosquitoes contribute significantly to the global burden of diseases in humans, livestock and wildlife. As such, the spatial distribution and abundance of mosquito species and their surveillance cannot be ignored. Here, we surveyed mosquito species across major tourism hotspots in semi-arid Botswana, including, for the first time, the Central Kalahari Game Reserve. Our results reported several mosquito species across seven genera, belonging to Aedes, Anopheles, Culex, Mansonia, Mimomyia, Coquillettidia and Uranotaenia. These results document a significant species inventory that may inform early warning vector-borne disease control systems and likely help manage the risk of emerging and re-emerging mosquito-borne infections.

Keywords

• Central Kalahari Game Reserve
• Chobe enclave
• emerging–re-emerging diseases
• mosquito-borne infections
• Okavango
• vector mosquitoes