Light-trap catches of Culicoides spp. (Dipt., Ceratopogonidae) from southern England

Abstract

During 1966 a Rothamsted and a New Jersey light-trap were operated at two coastal sites in Dorset, southern England. They collected fifteen species of Culicoides but did not give an accurate estimate of the relative importance of the anthropophilic species in the areas as shown by human-bait catches. Although unfed females predominated, gravid individuals formed a substantial part of the catch. Few males were caught. The seasonal incidence of the commoner species at the two sites were compared. Fecundity, as estimated by dissection, was higher than previously recorded for Ceratopogonidae, reaching a mean of 153/female in C. maritimus Kieff. A few females of several species had well developed fat reserves indicating the possibility of autogeny, hibernation or a migratory phase.