''Aedes punctor'' is a species of

mosquito Mosquitoes, the Culicidae, are a Family (biology), family of small Diptera, flies consisting of 3,600 species. The word ''mosquito'' (formed by ''Musca (fly), mosca'' and diminutive ''-ito'') is Spanish and Portuguese for ''little fly''. Mos ...

belonging to the genus ''

Aedes ''Aedes'' (also known as the tiger mosquito) is a genus of mosquitoes originally found in tropical and subtropical zones, but now found on all continents except Antarctica. Some species have been spread by human activity: ''Aedes albopictus'', ...

''. It is commonly known as the woodland mosquito or the punctor mosquito.

Description

''Aedes punctor'', like other ''Aedes'' species, has distinctive black and white markings on its body and legs. It is a daytime biter, with peak biting periods occurring early in the morning and in the evening before dusk.

Distribution

This species is typically associated with

woodland A woodland () is, in the broad sense, land covered with woody plants (trees and shrubs), or in a narrow sense, synonymous with wood (or in the U.S., the '' plurale tantum'' woods), a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunli ...

areas, hence its common name. It is widely distributed across temperate regions, including parts of

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

and

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

Medical importance

''Aedes punctor'' has been identified as a potential vector for certain

arboviruses Arbovirus is an informal name for any virus that is transmitted by arthropod vectors. The term ''arbovirus'' is a portmanteau word (''ar''thropod-''bo''rne ''virus''). ''Tibovirus'' (''ti''ck-''bo''rne ''virus'') is sometimes used to more spe ...

. Research has shown that it can transmit

Batai virus Batai virus (BATV) is a RNA virus belonging to the genus '' Orthobunyavirus''. Introduction Batai virus (BATV) is an enveloped, single-stranded, negative sense RNA genome. It is a member of the genus '' Orthobunyavirus''. It was first isolated f ...

, which is known to cause mild febrile illness in humans.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q11872641 punctor Diptera of North America Diptera of Europe Insect vectors of human pathogens Insects described in 1837