Mosquito (Diptera: Culicidae) diversity and medical importance in Koh Kong mangrove forests, Cambodia.

Background: Mangroves are an ecosystem interface between land and sea, forming distinctive shallow-water marine communities in tropical and subtropical waters. The mangrove forest surface in Cambodia is being reduced due to deforestation. Because the mangrove type of ecosystem generally hosts a great diversity of mosquitoes, the urbanization of these ecosystems will increase interactions between humans and wild mosquitoes, and might thus serve as a potential source of new infectious diseases. Understanding mosquito diversity and analyzing their virome is critical to estimate the risk of emergence or future outbreaks of mosquito-borne diseases.

Objective: To understand the mosquito diversity of mangrove forests of Koh Kong province (Cambodia).

Methods: In 2019, the mosquito fauna was sampled for 3 consecutive days using BG-Sentinel and light traps, in 3 locations in the mangrove forests of Koh Kong province (Cambodia) during both dry and rainy seasons.

Results: A total of 3107 samples were collected, belonging to 10 genera for 34 species. The genus was the most diverse, accounting for 10 species. One species, represented over 60% of all collected mosquitoes. A total of 12 medically important species were recorded, 2 species, () and , were collected in all sites and during both the dry and rainy seasons, highlighting a potential risk of these species acting as bridge vectors.

Conclusions: If new arboviruses were to be recorded in this peculiar area, it would indicate that the mosquito species found have the potential to act as a bridge between sylvatic and anthropogenic arboviruses.