''Aedes furcifer'' was named in 1913 as a '' nomen novum'' for ''nigra'' (Theobald).F. W. Edwards. 1913. Further Notes on African Culicidae. ''Bulletin of Entomological Research'', IV: 47-59; 48; http://www.mosquitocatalog.org/files/pdfs/039100-8.pdf .Thomas V. Gaffigan, Richard C. Wilkerson, James E. Pecor, Judith A. Stoffer and Thomas Anderson. 2016. "Aedes (Dic.) furcifer" in ''Systematic Catalog of Culicidae'', Walter Reed Biosystematics Unit, http://www.wrbu.org/SpeciesPages_non-ANO/non-ANO_A-hab/AEfur_hab.html , accessed 12 Feb 2016. ''Aedes furcifer'' and '' Aedes taylori'' have been treated as two species, usually found

sympatric In biology, two related species or populations are considered sympatric when they exist in the same geographic area and thus frequently encounter one another. An initially interbreeding population that splits into two or more distinct species s ...

ally, but are difficult to separate morphologicallyYiau-Min Huang. 1986. Notes on the ''Aedes'' (''Diceromyia'') ''furcifer'' Group, With a Description of a New Species (Diptera: Culicidae).'' Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington'' 88(4): 634-649; http://www.mosquitocatalog.org/files/pdfs/wr237.pdf . so the term "''Aedes furcifer-taylori'' group" has been used for the two species, and they have not always been differentiated by workers conducting studies on them. ''Aedes furcifer'' is the type species for the ''Aedes'' (''Diceromyia'') ''furcifer'' group in the

Afrotropical realm The Afrotropical realm is one of Earth's eight biogeographic realms. It includes Africa south of the Sahara Desert, the majority of the Arabian Peninsula, the island of Madagascar, southern Iran and extreme southwestern Pakistan, and the island ...

, comprising three species: ''Aedes furcifer'' (Edwards), '' Aedes taylori'' (Edwards), and '' Aedes cordellieri'' (Huang). Immature and adult female ''Ae. furcifer'' ''sensu stricto'' and ''Ae''. ''cordellieri'' are indistinguishable morphologically, with differences in the male gonocoxite being the only characteristic useful in separating the taxa.P. G. Jupp. 1998. ''Aedes'' (''Diceromyia'') ''furcifer'' (Edwards) and ''Aedes'' (''Diceromyia'') ''cordellieri'' Huang in Southern Africa: Distribution and Morphological Differentiation. ''Journal of the American Mosquito Control Association'' 14(3):273-276; https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/content/part/JAMCA/JAMCA_V14_N3_P273-276.pdf.

Bionomics

''Aedes furcifer'' is a "tree hole mosquito", i.e., its subadult stages develop in rot-holes in trees. The species has been found in

Burkina Faso Burkina Faso (, ; , ff, 𞤄𞤵𞤪𞤳𞤭𞤲𞤢 𞤊𞤢𞤧𞤮, italic=no) is a landlocked country in West Africa with an area of , bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana t ...

Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...

Gambia The Gambia,, ff, Gammbi, ar, غامبيا officially the Republic of The Gambia, is a country in West Africa. It is the smallest country within mainland AfricaHoare, Ben. (2002) ''The Kingfisher A-Z Encyclopedia'', Kingfisher Publicatio ...

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and Tog ...

, Guinea Bissau,

Ivory Coast Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire, officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital is Yamoussoukro, in the centre of the country, while its largest city and economic centre i ...

Kenya ) , national_anthem = " Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

Senegal Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring coun ...

Sudan Sudan ( or ; ar, السودان, as-Sūdān, officially the Republic of the Sudan ( ar, جمهورية السودان, link=no, Jumhūriyyat as-Sūdān), is a country in Northeast Africa. It shares borders with the Central African Republic t ...

Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands ...

Togo Togo (), officially the Togolese Republic (french: République togolaise), is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the east and Burkina Faso to the north. It extends south to the Gulf of Guinea, where its c ...

, and

Uganda }), is a landlocked country in East Africa. The country is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the south by Tanzania. The ...

Medical Importance

Yellow fever Yellow fever is a viral disease of typically short duration. In most cases, symptoms include fever, chills, loss of appetite, nausea, muscle pains – particularly in the back – and headaches. Symptoms typically improve within five days. ...

chikungunya Chikungunya is an infection caused by the ''Chikungunya virus'' (CHIKV). Symptoms include fever and joint pains. These typically occur two to twelve days after exposure. Other symptoms may include headache, muscle pain, joint swelling, and a r ...

, Zika, Bouboui and Bunyamwera viruses have been isolated from members of the ''furcifer'' group. ''Ae. furcifer'' is involved in monkey-to-man and man-to-man transmission of

yellow fever Yellow fever is a viral disease of typically short duration. In most cases, symptoms include fever, chills, loss of appetite, nausea, muscle pains – particularly in the back – and headaches. Symptoms typically improve within five days. ...

, is a potential vector of dengue virus serotype 2, and is a vector of

virus. ''Aedes furcifer'' feeds readily on monkeys and humans and has been observed to enter villages to feed on

human Humans (''Homo sapiens'') are the most abundant and widespread species of primate, characterized by bipedalism and exceptional cognitive skills due to a large and complex brain. This has enabled the development of advanced tools, cultu ...

s so is considered to be an important bridge vector between sylvatic and human populations.

References

furcifer Insects described in 1913 {{Culicidae-stub