Objective: To investigate the presence and abundance of mosquito species in containers found in different types of cemeteries in Puerto Rico to assess their importance and make control recommendations.
Methods: We conducted surveys of containers with water in 16 cemeteries in southeastern Puerto Rico to detect the presence of larvae and pupae of Aedes aegypti and other mosquitoes; to identify the most common and productive containers and to study their variation in relation to the type of cemetery.
Results: The most common containers with water were flowerpots, followed in abundance by a variety of discarded containers and open tombs. We found a positive relationship between density of containers with water and rainfall. There was a rich community of mosquito species developing in containers of the inspected cemeteries: nine mosquito species belonging to four genera with Ae. aegypti and Ae. mediovittatus being the most frequent and abundant. We sampled 13 cement-type cemeteries, 2 mixed and only 1 lawn cemetery, consequently, we could not draw any conclusion regarding container productivity and cemetery type.
Conclusions: Surveyed cemeteries were important sources of Ae. aegypti and other mosquitoes in flowerpots, discarded containers and open tombs. We recommend conducting further studies to establish how frequently inspections should occur; and mosquito control by emptying aquatic habitats and larviciding to reduce mosquito productivity and protect workers and visitors from mosquito bites and possible transmission of arboviruses.
Keywords: Aedes aegypti; Puerto Rico; cemeteries; flowerpots; mosquito control.
© 2022 The Authors. Tropical Medicine & International Health published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Belgian Society of Tropical Medicine and the Prince Leopold Institute of Tropical Medicine. This article has been contributed to by U.S. Government employees and their work is in the public domain in the USA.