Phlebotominae Sandflies Fauna (Diptera: Psychodidae) in Hamadan, Iran

Cutaneous and visceral leishmaniasis is important endemic diseases in many parts of the world, including Iran, which are transmitted by bites of sandflies. This study is conducted to identify Phlebotomine sand flies fauna in Hamadan, Iran. This is a descriptive cross-sectional study which caught sand flies in the months of May, June, July, August, September and October. The catch was performed by sticky traps. In this study, a total of 4871 sand flies were collected and identified. The number of sand flies caught from indoor and outdoor places was respectively 1302 (26.73%) and 3569 (73.27%). As a result of this study, nine species of sand flies were identified in the city of Hamadan, seven of which are of genre Phlebotomus (P. papatasi, P. kandelakii, P. sergenti, P. major, P. caucasicus, P. ansarii, P. halpensis) and two species are of the genre Sergentomyia (S. sintoni, S. dentata). In order to avoid the possible transmission of diseases and reduction of harassments of this insect during warm months of the year, personal protection such as use of mosquito nets, application of window and door mesh and use of repellents are recommended.