P. guentheri

Panstrongylus guentheri (Berg, 1879)

Distribution:

Argentina (Buenos Aires, Catamarca, Corrientes, Chaco, Chubut, Cordoba, Entre Rfos, Jujuy, La Pampa, La Rioja, Mendoza, Neuquen, Rfo Negro, Salta, Santiago del Estero, San Juan, San Luis, Santa Fe, Tucuman)

Bolivia (Santa Cruz, Tarija)

Paraguay

Characteristics:

• Length: male: 22-25 mm, female: 24-27 mm
• Body surface glabrous
• Overall color reddish or orange-brown, with dark brown areas on pronotum, pleura, scutellum, corium, and connexivum
• Head (figs. 222, 223, 224A, B) uniformly orange-brown
• Pronotum (figs. 222, 223, 224E) with anterior lobe light reddish brown, posterior lobe from uniformly light reddish brown to entirely dark brown
• Scutellum dark brown, posterior process light brown in some specimens, conspicuously rugose, with shallow median depression. Posterior scutellar process as long as main body of scutellum, horizontal, narrowly cylindrical, rounded apically.
• Legs uniformly reddish or orange-brown, with fore femur approximately five times as long as wide. Fore and mid femora with 2 rows of 3-5 conspicuous denticles each, extending over half the length of femur. Small denticles irregularly arranged near base of femur. Spongy fossulae on fore and mid legs of male, in female very small and distinct only on fore tibia.

Biology:

• Naturally infected with T. cruzi
• Attracted to artificial light
• Accidentally captured in human habitations and found in peridomicile (firewood)
• Mostly a sylvatic species, associated with rodents and didelphids

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Carcavallo RU, Galindez Giron, I, Jurberg, J & Lent H. 1998. Atlas of Chagas’ disease vectors in the Americas. Vol I, II, III. FioCruz Edition.

Dujardin JP, Schofield CJ & Panzera F. 2000. Les vecteurs de la maladie de Chagas. Recherches taxonomiques, biologiques et génétiques. Académie Royales des Sciences d'Outre-Mer.

Galvão C, Carcavallo R, Da Silva Rocha D & Jurberg J. 2003. A checklist of the current valid species of the subfamily Triatominae Jeannel, 1919 (Hemiptera, Reduviidae) and their geographical distribution, with nomenclatural and taxonomic notes. Zootaxa, 202: 1-36.

Lent H & Wygodzinsky P. 1979. Revision of the Triatominae (Hemiptera, Reduviidae), and their significance as vectors of Chagas disease. Bull. American Mus. Nat. Hist. 163 (Art. 3): 125-520.