COMPARATIVE PERFORMANCE OF DIFFERENT SAMPLING METHODS USED FOR MOSQUITO CATCHES IN IKEDURU L.G.A., IMO STATE, NIGERIA

Mosquitoes are obnoxious and notorious blood-sucking insects that devastate human population through malaria attack. This study was carried out in Ikeduru Local Government Area of Imo State, Nigeria in year 2020 with the aim of identifying the most effective method of mosquito sampling. Collection sites were randomly selected based on areas where human activities that aid the breeding of mosquitoes were observed. Mosquitoes were collected using four methods for the adult stage and one method for the larval stage. The methods applied and compared were the pyrethrum knock down/ spray sheet mosquito sampling method, the human bait/ human landing catch technique, the sweep net collection method, the mosquito net-light trap technique and the dipper technique. Sampled mosquitoes were identified using standard methods. The results of the comparative performance evaluations of the different mosquito sampling methods revealed that sweep net and pyrethrum knock down/ spray sheets had the highest occurrence of mosquito species while the dipper mosquito sampling method showed the least performance. This implies that the most effective way for mosquito vector catch from their breeding sites is through the use of sweep net and pyrethrum knock down/ spray sheets. The two effective sampling techniques permit mosquitoes to be picked intact without dismembering them for easy identification.