Faunistic inventory of the genus Culicoides (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) in Mauritius island, Indian Ocean: diversity and spatial distribution of species of veterinary interest

Événement d'échantillonnage
Dernière version Publié par Cirad - UMR ASTRE le août 25, 2025 Cirad - UMR ASTRE
Date de publication:
25 août 2025
Publié par:
Cirad - UMR ASTRE
Licence:
CC-BY-NC 4.0

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Description

A spatial survey across Mauritius was conducted using black light suction traps (OVI traps) from 10 to 19 April 2023. Nineteen farms were selected to cover a diversity of hosts and environments. The traps were operational from dusk to dawn, with a single night capture per site. This work updated the faunistic inventory of the genus Culicoides of veterinary interest in Mauritius and established a list of 4 Afrotropical species known to be vectors and distributed on the island. The abundance of Culicoides was relatively low as compared to mainland Africa, but in the range of other islands in the south-west Indian ocean region.

Enregistrements de données

Les données de cette ressource données d'échantillonnage ont été publiées sous forme d'une Archive Darwin Core (Darwin Core Archive ou DwC-A), le format standard pour partager des données de biodiversité en tant qu'ensemble d'un ou plusieurs tableurs de données. Le tableur de données du cœur de standard (core) contient 19 enregistrements.

1 tableurs de données d'extension existent également. Un enregistrement d'extension fournit des informations supplémentaires sur un enregistrement du cœur de standard (core). Le nombre d'enregistrements dans chaque tableur de données d'extension est illustré ci-dessous.

Event (noyau)
19
Occurrence 
152

Cet IPT archive les données et sert donc de dépôt de données. Les données et métadonnées de la ressource sont disponibles pour téléchargement dans la section téléchargements. Le tableau des versions liste les autres versions de chaque ressource rendues disponibles de façon publique et permet de tracer les modifications apportées à la ressource au fil du temps.

Versions

Le tableau ci-dessous n'affiche que les versions publiées de la ressource accessibles publiquement.

Comment citer

Les chercheurs doivent citer cette ressource comme suit:

Iyaloo D P, Elahee K B, Ramdonee Mosawa V, Munglee N R, Mahadeo I, Genevieve C, Bhoobun H, Ribon-Chaudat L, Lardeux R, Hammami P, Huber K, Bru D, Grimaud Y, Rasamoelina-Andriamanivo H, Baldet T, Garros C (2025). Faunistic inventory of the genus Culicoides (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) in Mauritius island, Indian Ocean: diversity and spatial distribution of species of veterinary interest. Version 1.0. GBIF Secretariat. Samplingevent dataset. https://ipt.gbif.org/resource?r=mauritian_culicoides_species_dataset&v=1.0

Droits

Les chercheurs doivent respecter la déclaration de droits suivante:

L’éditeur et détenteur des droits de cette ressource est Cirad - UMR ASTRE. Ce travail est sous licence Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC-BY-NC) 4.0.

Enregistrement GBIF

Cette ressource a été enregistrée sur le portail GBIF, et possède l'UUID GBIF suivante : 95c7ae80-85d4-41dd-9872-52ffc30c860b.  Cirad - UMR ASTRE publie cette ressource, et est enregistré dans le GBIF comme éditeur de données avec l'approbation du GBIF France.

Mots-clé

Samplingevent; Culicoides; monitoring; insect vector; entomology

Contacts

Diana P Iyaloo
  • Créateur
  • Personne De Contact
  • Researcher/Entomologist
Vector Biology and Control Division, Ministry of Health and Wellness
Curepipe
MU
Khouaildi B Elahee
  • Créateur
  • Researcher/Entomologist
Vector Biology and Control Division, Ministry of Health and Wellness
Curepipe
MU
Varina Ramdonee Mosawa
  • Créateur
  • engineer /Entomologist
Vector Biology and Control Division, Ministry of Health and Wellness
Curepipe
MU
Nabiihah R Munglee
  • Créateur
  • engineer /Entomologist
Vector Biology and Control Division, Ministry of Health and Wellness
Curepipe
MU
Ishana Mahadeo
  • Créateur
  • engineer /Entomologist
Livestock and Veterinary Division, Ministry of Agro Industry and Food Security
Reduit
MU
Christophe Genevieve
  • Créateur
Vet /Entomologist
Reduit
MU
Hemant Bhoobun
  • Créateur
Vet /Entomologist
Reduit
MU
Lorn Ribon-Chaudat
  • Créateur
  • PhD student /Entomologist
ASTRE, CIRAD, INRAE, Université de Montpellier
Montpellier
FR
Rosenka Lardeux
  • Créateur
  • engineer/Entomologist
ASTRE, CIRAD, INRAE, Université de Montpellier
Montpellier
FR
Pachka Hammami
  • Créateur
  • Researcher/Epidemiologist
ASTRE, CIRAD, INRAE, Université de Montpellier
34398 Montpellier
FR
Karine Huber
  • Créateur
  • Researcher/Entomologist
ASTRE, CIRAD, INRAE, Université de Montpellier
Montpellier
FR
David Bru
  • Créateur
  • engineer
ASTRE, CIRAD, INRAE, Université de Montpellier
Montpellier
FR
Yannick Grimaud
  • Créateur
  • Researcher/Entomologist
GDS Réunion
La Plaine des Cafres
La Réunion
FR
Harena Rasamoelina-Andriamanivo
  • Créateur
  • Epidemiologist
SEGA-One Health network, Indian Ocean Commission
Ebene
MU
Thierry Baldet
  • Créateur
  • Personne De Contact
  • Researcher/Entomologist
ASTRE, CIRAD, INRAE, Université de Montpellier
F-97491 Sainte-Clotilde
La Réunion
FR
Claire Garros
  • Créateur
  • Personne De Contact
  • Researcher/Entomologist
ASTRE, CIRAD, INRAE, Université de Montpellier
Montpellier
FR

Couverture géographique

The 19 collection sites were chosen by the Mauritius Veterinary Services and the Ministry of Health based on their field expertise. The selection criteria were to cover all the different districts of Mauritius, to represent the different farming practices and hosts present on the island, and finally, to include farms whose owners agreed to the presence of the trap. Two sites (Casela, Riviere des Anguilles) were recreational animal parks with a mixture of domestic and African animals, while the other were livestock farms.

Enveloppe géographique Sud Ouest [-20,49, 57,39], Nord Est [-20,02, 57,78]

Couverture taxonomique

A total of 38,186 Culicoides individuals were collected. Culicoides imicola and C. enderleini were present and distributed throughout the island, with 17 positive sites out of 19 prospected sites and 18 positives sites out of 19, respectively. Culicoides bolitinos and C. kibatiensis were recorded at 8 and 2 sites, respectively, with sites positive for C. bolitinos located in the south-east of the island and those for C. kibatiensis in the centre of the island.

Kingdom animalia
Phylum Arthropoda
Class Insecta
Order Diptera
Family Ceratopogonidae

Couverture temporelle

Date de début / Date de fin 2023-04-10 / 2023-04-19

Données sur le projet

Pas de description disponible

Titre Update of Mauritian Culicoides species inventory
Financement INTERREG co-financed by the European Union and the Réunion Region
Description du domaine d'étude / de recherche Mauritius island - national coverage

Les personnes impliquées dans le projet:

K B Elahee
  • Auteur
V Ramdonee
  • Auteur
N R Munglee
  • Auteur
I Mahadeo
  • Auteur
C Genevieve
  • Auteur
H Bhoobun
  • Auteur
L Ribon-Chaudat
  • Auteur
R Lardeux
  • Auteur
P Hammami
  • Auteur
K Huber
  • Auteur
D Bru
  • Auteur
Y Grimaud
  • Auteur
H Rasamoelina-Andriamanivo
  • Auteur
T Baldet
  • Créateur
C Garros
  • Créateur

Méthodes d'échantillonnage

The survey targeted farms housing cattle, sheep, goat or mixed. The traps were positioned outside stables or near animal resting areas and operated from at least one hour before dusk to one hour after dawn, with the exact geographical coordinates of each farm recorded by the operator. The traps used were black light suction traps (Onderstepoort Veterinary Institute design). Insects attracted to the light were collected using a fan that directed them into a beaker containing soapy water. The soap ensured the insects sank and prevented them from drying out. Once collected, the specimens were transferred into 70% ethanol at room temperature for preservation and transported to the lab. Damaged or incomplete specimens were excluded. In cases of excessively large samples, subsampling was performed to streamline the identification process, following a modified protocol outlined in Van Ark and Meiswinkel (1992). Specifically, if the total insect volume exceeded 3 mL, a subsample was taken, offering significant time savings. After subsampling, a preliminary sorting step was conducted under a stereomicroscope to isolate Culicoides from other insect species based on morphological traits, including body shape, antennal segment count, and wing patterns. Non-Culicoides specimens were not identified. Morphological identification was conducted following the morphological atlas from Desvars et al. (2015).

Etendue de l'étude Sampling was operated from 10th to 20th April 2023 (end of the warm season, known to be the most favourable period of abundance for insects, including Culicoides), with one night collection at each site.

Description des étapes de la méthode:

  1. The data collected at the time of sampling (events data) and at the time of identification (occurences data) were entered into an excel sheet and shared between the partners. The data were restructured using R software to meet GBIF publication criteria.

Données de collection

Nom de la collection Mauritius Culicoides faunistic inventory
Méthode de conservation des spécimens Alcohol

Citations bibliographiques

  1. Iyaloo DP, Zohdy S, Carney RM, Mosawa VR, Elahee KB, Munglee N, et al. (2024): A regional One Health approach to the risk of invasion by Anopheles stephensi in Mauritius. PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases, 18(9):e0011827. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0011827
  2. Jori F, Roger M, Baldet T, Delécolle JC, Sauzier J, Jaumally MR, et al. (2011): Orbiviruses in Rusa Deer, Mauritius, 2007. Emerging Infectious Diseases, 17(2):312–313. https://doi.org/10.3201/eid1702.100955
  3. Cêtre-Sossah CB, Ramprogus S, Boucher F, Cardinale E, Samoisy K, Samoisy JM, et al. (2025): Evidence of Bluetongue and Epizootic Haemorrhagic Disease Circulation in the Ruminant Population of the Republic of Mauritius. SSRN. https://www.ssrn.com/abstract=4578480
  4. Boorman J, Mellor PS. (1992): Culicoides vectors of bluetongue and African horse sickness viruses in Mauritius. Medical and Veterinary Entomology, 6(3):306–306. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2915.1992.tb00621.x
  5. Desvars A, Grimaud Y, Guis H, Esnault O, Allène X, Gardès L, et al. (2015): First overview of the Culicoides Latreille (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) livestock associated species of Reunion Island, Indian Ocean. Acta Tropica, 142:5–19. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actatropica.2014.10.017
  6. Grimaud Y, Guis H, Chiroleu F, Boucher F, Tran A, Rakotoarivony I, et al. (2019): Modelling temporal dynamics of Culicoides Latreille (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) populations on Reunion Island (Indian Ocean), vectors of viruses of veterinary importance. Parasites & Vectors, 12(1):562. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13071-019-3807-0
  7. Cornet M, Brunhes J. (1994): Révision des espèces de Culicoides apparentés à C. schultzei (Enderlein, 1908) dans la région afrotropicales (Diptera, Ceratopogonidae). Bulletin de la Société entomologique de France, 99(2):149–164.
  8. Garros C, Labuschagne K, Dommergues L, Ben M, Balenghien T, Muñoz F, et al. (2019): Culicoides Latreille in the sun: faunistic inventory of Culicoides species (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) in Mayotte (Comoros Archipelago, Indian Ocean). Parasites & Vectors, 12(1):135. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13071-019-3393-1
  9. Augot D, Mathieu B, Hadj-Henni L, Barriel V, Zapata Mena S, Smolis S, et al. (2017): Molecular phylogeny of 42 species of Culicoides (Diptera, Ceratopogonidae) from three continents. Parasite, 24:23. https://doi.org/10.1051/parasite/2017025
  10. De Meillon B. (1961): The Madagascan Ceratopogonidae. Revue de Entomologia Mocambaise, 4:34–64.
  11. Lambrecht FL. (1970): New records of bloodsucking insects from Seychelles Islands, Indian Ocean. Annals of the Entomological Society of America, 63:1776–1777. https://doi.org/10.1093/aesa/63.6.1776
  12. Wirth WW, Messersmith DH. (1977): Notes on the biting midges of the Seychelles (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae). Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington, 79:293–309.
  13. Gondard M, Postic L, Garin E, Turpaud M, Vorimore F, Ngwa-Mbot D, et al. (2024): Exceptional Bluetongue virus (BTV) and Epizootic hemorrhagic disease virus (EHDV) circulation in France in 2023. Virus Research, 350:199489. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.virusres.2024.199489
  14. Gourjault C, Pezzi L, Doudier B, Minodier P, Klitting R, Cano P, et al. (2025): Persistence of Oropouche virus in body fluids among imported cases in France, 2024. The Lancet Infectious Diseases, 25(2):e64–e65. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1473-3099(25)00009-2
  15. Naveca FG, Almeida TAPD, Souza V, Nascimento V, Silva D, Nascimento F, et al. (2024): Human outbreaks of a novel reassortant Oropouche virus in the Brazilian Amazon region. Nature Medicine, 30(12):3509–3521. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-024-03114-4
  16. Scachetti GC, Forato J, Claro IM, Hua X, Salgado BB, Vieira A, et al. (2025): Re-emergence of Oropouche virus between 2023 and 2024 in Brazil: an observational epidemiological study. The Lancet Infectious Diseases, 25(2):166–175. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1473-3099(25)00014-6
  17. Van Ark H, Meiswinkel R. (1992): Subsampling of large light trap catches of Culicoides (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae). Onderstepoort Journal of Veterinary Research, 59(3):183–189.

Métadonnées additionnelles

Remerciements The authors acknowledge the farmers for allowing to collect Culicoides on their farms and thank them for their hospitality and logistical help during the fieldwork. This research work was carried out as part of the One Health Indian Ocean Dispositif en Partenariat (DP) partnership research network. The collaborative work between Réunion and Mauritius on vector risks is supported by the INTERREG co-financed by the European Union and the Réunion Region. Europe is committed to Réunion with INTERREG
Introduction

In Mauritius, an active surveillance system is currently in place at points of entry for diseases of public health importance (Iyaloo et al. 2024), however Culicoides-Borne Diseases (CBD) are not included. Measures currently in place to ensure that the country remains free from diseases of veterinary importance include (i) importing livestock only if it is officially certified as ‘disease-free’ and (ii) a quarantine period depending on the species, after entry into Mauritian territory. Therefore, the risk of potential introduction of CBDs to Mauritius is likely due to the country’s significant trade links with endemic countries, the large number of bovines, equines and small ruminants imported each year and the high number of tourists visiting the island.

Although diseases vectored by Culicoides are not clinically observed in Mauritius, serological surveys have proven the circulation of EHDV and BTV with at least 4 serotypes circulating in Rusa deer (Jori et al. 2007) and in cattle, sheep, goat and deer (Cêtre-Sossah et al. 2025). According to published literature, only two studies have investigated the presence of Culicoides in Mauritius. The first one was conducted in 1990 where respectively 27 individuals of Culicoides imicola Kieffer, 35 individuals of Culicoides brevitarsis Kieffer and 2 individuals of both species were collected from traps operated over 1 night in Mon Loisir, Palmar and Medine (Boorman et al. 1992). The identification of C. brevitarsis was tentative, as Culicoides bolitinos Meiswinkel and C. brevitarsis are morphologically closely related species. In the second study conducted in 2007, a total of 1,597 individuals of C. imicola and 11,678 individuals of C. enderleini were collected from traps operated for 1 night in 3 Rusa deer farms (Jori et al. 2007). So far, no entomological surveys have been conducted in livestock farms at the island scale. Culicoides diversity in Reunion Island, 220 km south-west of Mauritius, has recently been investigated (Desvars et al. 2015, Grimaud et al. 2019). Five Afrotropical species were recorded: C. imicola, C. bolitinos, Culicoides enderleini Cornet and Brunhes, Culicoides grahamii Austen and Culicoides kibatiensis Goetghebuer. An altitudinal gradient was observed, with C. imicola being the dominant species at low altitudes and C. kibatiensis at high altitudes. Abundance showed high spatial heterogeneity. In Mayotte, an island of the Comoros archipelago located in the Mozambique Channel, C. enderleini and Culicoides rhizophorensis Khamala and Kettle were detected in a study conducted by Cornet and Brunhes (1994), while in a more recent study, Garros et al recorded at least 17 described Afrotropical species and one undescribed species (Garros et al. 2019). The low abundance and rare occurrence of C. imicola, generally considered the most abundant species in livestock in the Afrotropical region, was unexpected. The most abundant and frequent species was Culicoides trifasciellus Goetghebuer, which is not currently considered a vector species, but whose potential role in the transmission of infectious agents needs to be studied in more detail. In Madagascar, C. imicola and species of the Schultzei group have been collected, however, the Culicoides species diversity is likely to be underestimated considering the size of this island and its unique ecological diversity (Cornet et al 1994, Augot et al. 2017, De Meillon et al. 1961). Two species have been recorded in the Seychelles - Culicoides kusaiensis Tokunaga present in Micronesia and Culicoides leucostictus Kieffer considered an Afrotropical species (Lambrecht et al. 1970, Wirth et al . 1977).

Considering the current health situation in the context of CBDs affecting the livestock sector and human populations worldwide (Gondart et al. 2024, Gourjault et al. 2025, Naveca et al. 2024, Scachetti et al. 2025), it is important to update and revise the Culicoides faunistic inventory in Mauritius to assess the risk of disease transmission and provide guidelines for the development of preventive and control strategies aimed at minimizing the risk of outbreaks for both animal and public health.

In this study, surveys were carried out on 19 farms with different host diversity from 10 to 19 April 2023, to investigate the abundance, diversity and spatial distribution of Culicoides biting midge species in Mauritius, with the aim of assessing the risks of CBDs transmission and gaining a better understanding of the epidemiology of Culicoides borne viruses on the island.

Premiers pas This dataset consists of three interrelated data files that comprehensively describe the sampling campaigns, species occurrence, and associated environmental conditions. These datasets provide a detailed framework for understanding the faunistic distribution of Culicoides sp. in Mauritius.
  • Event Dataset: This file documents each sampling event. Each entry corresponds to a unique sampling campaign (event) conducted on 19 farms or animal parks included in the study. Each event is characterised by the date of the event (including trap set-up; eventDate), the sampling protocol and effort, and the gps coordinates (upscaled to 0.01 degrees for anonymisation purposes). The local name of the study site is also given (location ID). Total volume of the catch is given (SampleSizeValue) in milliliters (samplesizeUnit).
  • Occurrence Dataset: This file details the Culicoides specimens collected during each sampling event. It includes species identification and the number of individuals recorded per sex (male/female). Across all events, a total of 38 185 specimens from 4 species were identified.
  • Measurement or Fact Dataset: This file provides ecological and meteorological variables retrieved for each sampling event. These variables include sub-sampling details, qualitative observations, agricultural census, climatic and geospatial products, offering crucial contextual information for understanding Culicoides population dynamics.
These datasets are structured to align with standard ecological data formats and are linked through unique event identifiers, facilitating cross-referencing between sampling details, species occurrence, and environmental conditions. Analysis may require specialised statistical or GIS software, particularly for spatial and ecological modelling.
Objet Culicoides biting midges (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) are vectors of pathogens of veterinary and public health concerns, including the bluetongue virus (BTV), Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease Virus (EHDV) and Oropouche virus. Considering the current health situation in the context of Culicoides-Borne Diseases affecting the livestock sector and human populations worldwide, it is important to update and revise the Culicoides faunistic inventory in Mauritius to assess the risk of disease transmission and provide guidelines for the development of preventive and control strategies aimed at minimizing the risk of outbreaks for both animal and public health. In this study, surveys were carried out on 19 farms with different host diversity from 10 to 19 April 2023, to investigate the abundance, diversity and spatial distribution of Culicoides biting midge species in Mauritius, with the aim of assessing the risks of CBDs transmission and gaining a better understanding of the epidemiology of Culicoides borne viruses on the island.
Identifiants alternatifs https://ipt.gbif.fr/resource?r=mauritian_culicoides_species_dataset