[The relationship of the larval behavioral traits of the malarial mosquito Anopheles messeae (Diptera: Culicidae) to its sensitivity to the entomopathogenic bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis subspecies israelensis].

Behavioural actions of the malarial mosquito Anopheles messeae larvae and their correlations with the susceptibility to the entomopathogenic bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis (Bti) were studied. The larvae were differentiated according to their feeding mode ("filter-feeders" and "scraper-feeders") and to their avoidance reaction on a concussion of water surface by water drops ("divers" and "undivers"). The "scraper-feeders" and "divers" showed a tendency of decreased susceptibility to Bti, while the "filter-feeders" and "undivers" did not. The presence of the white pigment (striped genotypes) on a dorsum of the larvae correlated with the reaction of avoidance and phyllotaxis but not with the susceptibility to Bti.