Date of Award
5-3-2018
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Biology, MS
First Advisor
Tanja McKay
Committee Members
Martin Huss; Virginie Rolland
Call Number
LD251.A566t 2018 T63
Abstract
Dirofilaria immitis (Leidy), is a mosquito-borne, parasitic filarid responsible for heartworm disease in vertebrates. A mosquito survey, focusing on diurnal species, was conducted from May to December 2016 to identify the prevalence of D. immitis in mosquitoes collected at residential entryways in Jonesboro, AR. Aedes albopictus (Skuse), a diurnal mosquito, was collected in low abundance (3.4%) with 16.7% mosquitoes positive for heartworm microfilariae. Dirofilaria immitis was observed in 11.2% of the total mosquitoes collected. The second study estimated the seasonality of heartworm disease in four high-risk US cities. Daily average and hourly temperatures were used to predict the presence of infective Dirofilaria immitis larvae. Daily average temperatures underestimated the transmission season, whereas hourly temperatures predicted earlier start and end dates. The transmission seasons shortened as latitudes increased. The estimated days of transmission can be used as guidelines for understanding the seasonality of heartworm disease exposure.
Rights Management
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Recommended Citation
Todorovic, Sofija, "Potential Vectors of Dog Heartworm, Dirofilaria Immitis, in Arkansas and Seasonal Transmission in the United States" (2018). Student Theses and Dissertations. 511.
https://arch.astate.edu/all-etd/511
