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Mosquitoes are the most important vectors of serious infectious diseases in the world. Dengue, Zika, chikungunya and yellow fever are emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases, associated with the distribution of two key vectors i.e. Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus throughout the world including countries neighbouring Iran. Entomological surveillance was planned and performed monthly from May to December during 2014–2020 in selected counties of Mazandaran Province, North of Iran, by ovitrap, larval collection, hand catch and human baited trap. Overall, 4410 Aedes specimens including 2376 larvae (53.9%) and 2034 (46.1%) adults belonging to six species, namely Aedes vexans, Aedes geniculatus, Aedes caspius, Aedes echinus, Aedes pulcritarsis and Aedes flavescence were collected and morphologically identified. Over the seven years of surveillance, Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus were not found by any sampling method. Aedes vexans and Ae. geniculatus were the most abundant species, their populations peaked in October and November and was positively correlated with precipitation and relative humidity. Aedes flavescence was a new species record for the province. A flowchart for planning and implementation of invasive mosquito surveillance for provincial health authorities in the country is proposed. These surveillance efforts provide basic and timely information for the health system to act promptly on integrated and intensified surveillance and control programs should Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus detected in the province.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: The approach of food storage, especially cereals and basic human food sources, has long been considered as a problem to combat storage pests. the use of plant compounds has been suggested by researchers as an alternative to phosphine in the fight against pests.In this study, four plants such as Aesculushippocastanum, Thymus daenensis, Artemisia abrotanum and Chrozophoratinctoria were evaluated based on their deadly and repellent properties of pests and insectsconsidering Iranian medicine sources. MATERIALS AND METHODS: First, plant extracts were prepared by ethanol solvent method and then, their lethal and Anti-feeding experiments were performed on rice insects (Sitophylusoryzae) in standard laboratory conditions. RESULTS: Extracts of Thymus daenensis, Aesculushippocastanum, Artemisia abrotanum and Chrozophoratinctoria were estimated to be 553.2, 753.6, 878.3 and 987.3 mg / ml effective dose, respectively.The results showed that Thymus daenensis extract with 90.33% with lower concentration compared to Aesculushippocastanum, Artemisia abrotanum and Chrozophoratinctoria extracts has the highest lethal effect against S. oryzae. Also in Anti-feedingtest, Thymus daenensis extract showed the highest Anti-feedingeffect in comparison with Aesculushippocastanum, Artemisia abrotanum and Chrozophoratinctoria extracts, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The use of plants in the control against storage pests such as rice weevils will have favorable environmental results, human health and less storage is dangerous.

Background Water pollution due to uncontrolled release of chemical pollutants is an important global problem. Its effect on medically important insects, especially mosquitoes, is a critical issue in the epidemiology of mosquito-borne diseases. Methods In order to understand the effect of water pollutants on the demography of Anopheles stephensi, colonies were reared in clean, moderately and highly polluted water for three consecutive generations at 27 °C, 75% RH, and a photoperiod of 12:12 h (L:D). The demographic data of the 4th generation of An. stephensi were collected and analysed using the age-stage, two-sex life table. Results The intrinsic rate of increase (r), finite rate of increase (λ), mean fecundity (F) and net reproductive rate (R0) of An. stephensi in clean water were 0.2568 d−1, 1.2927 d−1, 251.72 eggs, and 109.08 offspring, respectively. These values were significantly higher than those obtained in moderately polluted water (r = 0.2302 d−1, λ = 1.2589 d−1, 196.04 eggs, and R0 = 65.35 offspring) and highly polluted water (r = 0.2282 d−1, λ = 1.2564 d−1, 182.45 eggs, and R0 = 62.03 offspring). Female adult longevity in moderately polluted (9.38 days) and highly polluted water (9.88 days) were significantly shorter than those reared in clean water (12.43 days), while no significant difference in the male adult longevity was observed among treatments. Conclusions The results of this study showed that An. stephensi can partially adapt to water pollution and this may be sufficient to extend the range of mosquito-borne diseases.

Rove beetles (Coleoptera: Staphilinidae) are a group of diverse insects occurring in a range of different ecosystems, from the plains to the mountaintops. However, there are no reports in the literature of their presence in the tidal zone of the seashore. This is the first report of the presence ofPaederus fuscipesCurtis on the coastal sands of the Caspian Sea, northern Iran. In all 14 counties of Mazandaran Province on the southern coast of the Caspian Sea, systematic monthly sampling of the beetles took place from May 2012 to April 2013. Samplings (30-min-person) were performed and specimens collected from the sandy seashore by gloved bare hands and identified using appropriate keys. To our surprise, all 1012 specimens collected were exclusivelyP. fuscipesCurtis, but with significant seasonal and geographical variations among the numbers of specimens collected. The distribution and activity ofP. fuscipeswere outstanding in Mahmoodabad and Fereidonkenar counties, with the highest abundance and frequency in September, posing a serious health threat to tourists and residents of these areas.