Sandfly

Sandfly (or sand fly) is a colloquial name for any species or genus of flying, biting, blood-sucking dipteran (fly) encountered in sandy areas. In the United States, sandfly may refer to certain horse flies that are also known as "greenheads" (family Tabanidae), or to members of the family Ceratopogonidae. Outside the United States, sandfly may refer to members of the subfamily Phlebotominae within the Psychodidae. Biting midges (Ceratopogonidae) are sometimes called sandflies or no-see-ums (no-see-em, noseeum). New Zealand sandflies are in the genus Austrosimulium, a type of black fly.[1]

For other uses, see Sandfly (disambiguation).
"Sandflea" redirects here. Sandflea may also refer to members of the family Talitridae.

In the various sorts of sandfly only the female is responsible for biting and sucking the blood of mammals, reptiles and birds; the protein in the blood is necessary for the production of eggs, making the sandfly an anautogenous reproducer.

Some sandfly genera of the subfamily Phlebotominae are the primary vectors of leishmaniasis and pappataci fever; both diseases are confusingly referred to as sandfly fever. In the New World, leishmaniasis is spread by sand flies of the genus Lutzomyia; in the Old World, the disease is spread by sandflies of the genus Phlebotomus. Belize and Honduras are notorious in the Caribbean for their sandfly populations and travel pages frequently warn tourists to bring bug spray containing high concentrations of DEET.

New Zealand Sandfly biting a human's thumb

Viruses

Among the viruses that sandflies can carry is the Chandipura virus, which, as a cousin of rabies, is very deadly. There was an outbreak in India in 2010.

Protozoa
Cutaneous leishmaniasis, a disease transmitted by sandflies, in North Africa; Leishmania infantum = green, Leishmania major = blue, Leishmania tropica = red[2]

Leishmaniasis, a disease caused by several species of the genus Leishmania, is transmitted by various sandflies.[2]

Leishmania donovani causes spiking fevers, hepatosplenomegaly, and pancytopenia. It can be diagnosed through microscopic review by visualizing amastigotes in containing macrophages, and is treatable with sodium stibogluconate.

Prevention

Over-the-counter repellents with high concentrations of DEET or picaridin are proven to work, but may not be suitable for some people, e.g. people with sensitive skin and pregnant women. However, the effectiveness of DEET and picaridin products seems to differ among individuals with some people reporting better results with one product over another while other people finding neither product effective for them. This may be partially due to various species living in different areas.

A particular extract of Lemon Eucalyptus oil (not the essential oil) has now been shown to be as effective as DEET in various studies.[3][4]

Most information on repellents focuses on mosquitoes, but mosquito repellents are effective for sandflies and midges as well.[5]

Cultural views

New Zealand sandflies (which are taxonomically blackflies—Simulidae) have a native Māori legend wherein "the god Tu-te-raki-whanoa had just finished creating the landscape of Fiordland, it was absolutely stunning... so stunning that it stopped people from working. They just stood around gazing at the beauty instead. The goddess Hine-nui-te-pō became angry at these unproductive people, so she created the sandfly to bite them and get them moving".[6]

These sand flies were able, according to another Māori legend, to revive the dead hero Ha-tupatu.[7]

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See also

References
  1. Sandflies and mosquitoes – Sandflies: New Zealand’s blackflies. Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand (2009-03-01). Retrieved on 2011-06-15.
  2. Aoun, K.; Bouratbine, A. (2014). "Cutaneous Leishmaniasis in North Africa: a review". Parasite. 21: 14. doi:10.1051/parasite/2014014. PMC 3952656. PMID 24626301.
  3. Trigg, JK (1996). "Evaluation of a eucalyptus-based repellent against Culicoides impunctatus (Diptera:Ceratopogonidae) in Scotland". Journal of the American Mosquito Control Association. 12 (2 Pt 1): 329–30. PMID 8827615.
  4. Carroll, SP; Loye, J (2006). "Field test of a lemon eucalyptus repellent against Leptoconops biting midges". Journal of the American Mosquito Control Association. 22 (3): 483–5. doi:10.2987/8756-971X(2006)22[483:FTOALE]2.0.CO;2. PMID 17067050.
  5. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: CDC: West Nile Virus – Updated Insect Repellent. Cdc.gov, USA (2009-10-13). Retrieved on 2011-06-15.
  6. Sandflies – New Zealand – IgoUgo – stomps. IgoUgo (2008-06-04). Retrieved on 2011-06-15.
  7. Ha-tupatu and the sand flies. Maori.org.nz. Retrieved on 2011-06-15.
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