Culex (Culex) quinquefasciatus Say, 1823

It is important that the identification of your specimen is checked by a mosquito taxonomist.

New Zealand Status: Introduced

Culex quinquefasciatus is established in New Zealand.

Vector and Disease Information

Culex quinquefasciatus is a natural vector of Wuchereria bancrofti, Plasmodium (avian malaria), myxomatosis, and other diseases in some parts of the world (Holder 1999). It has been shown to be able to carry Murray Valley encephalitis (MVE) virus in laboratory studies and MVE virus has been isolated from it in northern Western Australia.  Culex quinquefasciatus has yielded an isolate of Ross River (RR) virus during an outbreak in New Caledonia, but from a number of laboratory studies in Australia it appears to be a poor and unlikely vector of MVE, Kunjin, RR and other arboviruses. It is a poor vector of dog heartworm, and of human filariasis in more northern tropical regions (Russell 1993).

Distribution

Australasian Biogeographic Region
PRESENT; INTRODUCED.
New Zealand - Introduced in the 1830's (Laird 1995), it is now found in Northland, Coromandel Peninsula (Belkin 1968), Waikato (Belkin 1968, Laird 1990 & 1995), Gisborne (Holder 1999), Taranaki (Weinstein et al. 1997), Hawkes Bay (Laird 1995), Wanganui, Wellington (Holder 1999), Marlborough Sounds, Nelson (Weinstein et al. 1997), Marlborough, Kaikoura, Buller, Mid Canterbury (Holder 1999). NZ Distribution Map

Australia - New South Wales (widespread), Victoria (less common south of central highlands), South Australia, (also Queensland, Northern Territory, Western Australia); typically closely associated with human habitation, particularly urban (Russell 1993).

Austral Islands (Tubuai), Bougainville, Easter Island, Ellice Islands, Fiji, Loyalty Islands, Nauru, New Britain, New Caledonia, New Guinea, Norfolk Island, Northern Cook Islands, Papua New Guinea, Pitcairn Island, Rapa Island, Samoa, Îles Wallis, Marquesas Islands, Society Islands, Solomon Islands, Southern Cook Islands (Santa Cruz Islands), Tonga, Tuamotu Archipelago, Vanuatu (Banks Islands) (WRBU 2001).

Rest of the World
COSMOPOLITAN.

Nearctic Biogeographic Region
PRESENT; ENDEMIC
USA (Alabama, Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, Texas).

Neotropical Biogeographic Region
PRESENT; ENDEMIC
Antilles Islands, Argentina, Bahamas, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Cayman Islands, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, French Guiana, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Netherlands Antilles, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Puerto Rico, Nicaragua, Santa Dominica, Surinam, Tierra del Fuego, Trinidad, Uruguay, Venezuela, Virgin Islands (WRBU 2001).

Afrotropical Biogeographic Region
Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Central African Republic, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea Bissau, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Yemen, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Yemen, Zaire, Zambia, Zimbabwe (WRBU 2001).

Oriental Biogeographic Region
Bangladesh, Cambodia, India ( Assam), Indonesia, Japan (Amami Island, Ogasawara Islands, Okinawa Island, Yaeyama Is.), Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Pakistan, Philippines, South China & Hainan Island, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam (WRBU 2001).

Palaearctic Biogeographic Region
Iran, Japan (Honshu, Kyushu, Shikoku), Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, United Arab Emirates (WRBU 2001).

Taxonomic Position

Part of the Pipiens complex of species, Group pipiens, and subgroup pipiens of the subgenus Culex.