Psychodidae

SPECIES: Psychodidae ( sub-family Phlebotomus papatasi, order Diptera )

COMMON NAME: "Papatasi" ('eating in silence') comes from their ability to fly silently, and the ability to sting without the person noticing.

SIZE: (2-3 mm); under optimum temperature and humidity conditions, the larva can reach a maximum size of 5 mm.

LIFECYCLE: the entire life cycle completes in 40-45 days. In Italy there may be up to 4-5 generations per year. Overwintering occurs at the larval stage, with the adult form emerging in spring.

FEATURES: bloodsucking Diptera. Pale-yellow or yellow-rust, covered with long, thick hair; the thorax and the abdomen are almost at right angles. The wings are large, hairy and nearly oval in shape. A creature of crepuscular or nocturnal habits, it attacks many species of animals and then takes refuge in cracks in the soil, in caves, in ruins, animal burrows, and dry-stone walls.

DIET: As for mosquitoes, the female has a need for protein to mature the eggs is therefore hematophagous. They feed on decaying organic material (leaves, rotting rodent droppings, cellulose).

DAMAGE: Besides the annoyance caused by the bite, that becomes very itchy, one of the main problems related to this little insect is leishmaniasis for which they are vectors. This disease causes big problems especially in dogs. ILeishmaniasis is also a communicable disease and, under specific conditions, can be transmitted even to humans. It is important to remember that leishmaniasis is not transmitted directly from dog to dog or dog to person: the for the protozoan to become infectious, it must first complete part of its biological lifecycle during the fly's bloodsucking phase. The proximity or the possession of an infected dog therefore poses a minimal epidemiological risk for man, given that in endemic areas, there will already be several million potentially infected sand flies that can sting.

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