Species Composition, Seasonal Abundance, and Biting Behavior of Malaria Vectors in Rural Conhane Village, Southern Mozambique.

Malaria vector surveillance provides important data to inform the effective planning of vector control interventions at a local level. The aim of this study was to determine the species diversity and abundance, biting activity, and infectivity of mosquitoes from a rural village in southern Mozambique. Human landing catches were performed monthly between December 2020 and August 2021. All collected were identified to the species level and tested for the presence of malaria parasites. Eight species were identified among the 1802 collected anophelines. sensu lato (s.l.) were the most abundant (51.9%) and were represented by and . s.l. represented 4.5%. The biting activity of was more pronounced early in the evening and outdoors, whereas that of sensu stricto (s.s.) was more intense late in the night, with no significant differences in location. One and one , both collected outdoors, were infected with . The overall entomologic inoculation rate was estimated at 0.015 infective bites per person per night. The significant outdoor and early evening biting activity of and . found in this village may negatively impact the effectiveness of current vector control interventions. Additional vector control tools that can target these mosquitoes are needed.