Susceptibility tests in Trinidad with Anopheles aquasalis Curry, Aedes aegypti (L.) and Culex pipiens fatigans Wiedemann, using the standard WHO mosquito adult test kit.

Malaria, yellow fever and filariasis eradication programmes in many parts of the world have in recent years become largely dependent on the use of DDT, dieldrin, gamma-BHC and organophosphorus insecticides. It is of vital importance for the success of such programmes, often costly when undertaken on a nation-wide basis, that the insecticides being used are effective against the vectors of these diseases.During 1958 and 1959, susceptibility tests carried out in Trinidad using the standard World Health Organization mosquito adult test kit revealed that Anopheles aquasalis, the main vector of malaria in the coastal districts of Trinidad, was susceptible to DDT, moderately resistant to gamma-BHC, and highly resistant to dieldrin.Tests with Aëdes aegypti, the vector of yellow fever, showed that the species was highly resistant to DDT, though susceptible to dieldrin and gamma-BHC. Aëdes aegypti from Kingston, Jamaica, gave similar results.Culex pipiens fatigans, the vector of filaria parasites, was found to be highly resistant to DDT, gamma-BHC and dieldrin.