Disseminated sandflies Sergentomyia and Phlebotomus in Al Muthanna province, Comparative and Taxonomic Study

The taxonomy of the subfamily Phlebotominae has undergone several changes since the early twentieth century, and even with several studies using both old and new tools, including molecular markers, doubts remain about the relationship and differences between them. These differences reflect a lack of knowledge of the true evolutionary history of flies. In parallel, the old and current classifications consider only adult morphological data. However, there is consensus among the authors on the importance of morphological data from all life stages. These discrepancies illustrate the need for new studies to provide hypotheses that could contribute to the classification of this subfamily. Phlebotomies (Diptera, Psychodidae, and Phlebotominae) have been extensively studied, mainly due to the role of these flies as primary vectors of various parasites, including various Leishmania species, Bartonella and viruses that cause many diseases to humans and other vertebrates. The studies started to collect and identify the Phlebotominae sand fly present in different areas of Al-Muthanna province. The studies also aimed to determine their numbers and classify them based on the approved scientific classifications, as well as the difference between the most important species in the province. Light traps and sticky traps were used, and using the insect classification by (J. Abul-Hab and S. A. Ahmed, 1984) and (Al-Mayali & Al-Hassani,2016), and 4 species were recorded during a ten-month period. Within the identified four species, a total of 1486 specimens comprising four species of two genera were collected: Phlebotomus (two species) and Sergentomyia (two species). Phlebotomus papatasi 683 (45.967%) was the dominant species followed by Sergentomyia sentoni 380 (25.57%), Phlebotomus sergenti 290 (19.51%). Sergentomyia squamipluris 133 (8.95%) distributed among 822 females and 664 males.