Culicoides imicola

SPECIES: Culicoides imicola ( order Diptera )

COMMON NAME: Bluetongue Mosquito

SIZE: Much smaller than the common mosquito, about 2 mm

LIFECYCLE: The females have several ovarian cycles of 4–5 day durations, always precede from a meal of blood. May lay in humid environments 100 – 200 eggs that hatch in 2-3 days. Larval development may last for about a week to several weeks. In temperate zones this period can be very prolonged.

FEATURES: The usual stinging sucker all mosquitoes possess. Smaller in size than the Culex pipiens, it differs by the presence of spotting in the wings. They have antennas consisting of 15 items.

HABITAT: Originating in tropical and subtropical areas of Africa and Asia, the mosquito is able to adapt to temperate regions, including Europe. In Italy the mosquito was first identified in Sardinia.

DIET: Hawthorn females feed during night, both in the open air and in the stables. The male does not bite and feeds only on sugary substances.

DAMAGE: Culicoides imicola is still known as a threat to breeding animals, as a vector of two dangerous and different viruses; sucking the blood of cattle, goats, sheep, horses, pigs, yard voles, etc., is able to transfer its pathogens, making the animals severely ill. The two major viruses are: The Bluetongue Virus (BTV), on almost all ruminants, which show a very dark color on the tongue; The African Horse Sickness Virus (AHS), on horses and donkeys. The viruses transmitted by this insect, once in circulation in the blood, initially attack the salivary glands and they are then able to infect other animals even with the intake of food, if the saliva has been infected; since the virus develops in humid places, then in the presence of water, can be transferred from animal to animal through the drinking water.

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