Literature review of the systematics, biology and role in malaria transmission of species in the Afrotropical Anopheles subgenus Anopheles (Diptera: Culicidae) Author Coetzee, Maureen text Zootaxa 2022 2022-05-04 5133 2 182 200 journal article 55700 10.11646/zootaxa.5133.2.2 ab46536f-264d-4372-b58e-c16649a0dd75 1175-5326 6521605 A227A794-4435-4FBE-B021-45EF51C56203 Anopheles tenebrosus Dönitz, 1902 1928. Anopheles mauritianus var. tenebrosus of Edwards 1936. Anopheles coustani var. tenebrosus of de Meillon TYPE LOCALITY : Wadi Natrun , Egypt . DESCRIPTION: Wing length : 5.0 mm. Wing ( Fig. 9a ): Similar to An. ziemanni but apical pale fringe spot may be reduced, subcostal pale spot sometimes absent, and rarely, costa entirely dark. Maxillary palpus : Shaggy, with four pale bands. Legs ( Fig. 9b ): Apex of foretibia and base of foretarsomere 1 always dark. Apex of hindtibia narrowly pale; hindtarsomere 1 entirely dark basally; hindtarsomeres 4 and 5 pale, 0.5 of hindtarsomere 3 pale. LARVAL HABITAT: Natural collections of clear water with aquatic and semi-aquatic vegetation, such as swamps, ponds, backwaters of streams, springs, ditches and rice fields. In laboratory experiments, Coetzee & le Sueur (1988) showed that 39.5% of 1,710 An. tenebrosus eggs survived to fourth-instar larvae in 25% seawater, suggesting that the species could occupy a broader range of larval habitats than previously thought. ADULT BIOLOGY: Cattle-feeding tendencies were confirmed in Ethiopia ( Habtewold et al. 2004 ; Zeru et al. 2020 ). Long considered unimportant in the transmission of malaria parasites, this was confirmed by recent studies in Egypt ( Morsy et al . 1995 ) and Mozambique ( Charlwood et al . 2013 ; S. Irish, personal communication). Aranda et al. (2005) in southern Mozambique collected 43 An. tenebrosus in a light trap and reported “a few” positive for circumsporozoite protein “albeit with low optical density values”. No further data were provided, and this requires confirmation. DISTRIBUTION: Widespread and abundant throughout eastern and southern Africa, including Angola . The presence of An. tenebrosus in Gabon was confirmed by Paupy et al. (2013) who caught three specimens in a light trap in the La Lekedi wildlife park. Also known from Egypt , Israel , Jordan , eastern and southwestern Saudi Arabia , Yemen and the Dhofar coast of Oman ( Evans 1938 ; Peffly 1959 ; Gillies & de Meillon 1968 ; Glick 1992 ; Morsy et al. 1995 ; Abdullah & Merdan 1995 ).