Temporal and spatial variation of phlebotomine (Diptera: Psychodidae) community diversity in a cutaneous leishmaniasis endemic area of Costa Rica.

Phlebotomine sand fly species composition and diversity were studied in Acosta, an area of Costa Rica endemic for cutaneous leishmaniasis. Two CDC miniature light traps per house were set overnight in 72 houses distributed in 6 localities, once a month, during the rainy seasons of 1994 and 1995. Of the 22 species collected, the most common were Lutzomyia serrana (Damasceno & Arouck), L. youngi Feliciangelli & Murillo, L. ylephiletor (Fairchild & Hertig), L. shannoni (Dyar), L. cruciata (Coquillett), L. gomezi (Nitzulescu), L. sanguinaria (Fairchild & Hertig), and Warileya rotundipennis (Fairchild & Hertig). The Czekanowsky index and the Sorensen index as modified by Bray and Curtis to consider abundance were used to compare species composition and beta-diversity. Comparisons were made among localities within years, between years, and localities each year. The data strongly indicated that phlebotomine species composition is more stable than diversity or abundance.