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Seasonal bionomics of Anopheles mosquitoes in the cold-western Himalayan region of Kangra, Himachal Pradesh, India

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Abstract

Malaria remains a major global public health concern. Climatic warming in Himachal Pradesh, a hilly and forested state in India, may increase the suitability for mosquito-borne diseases. Kangra district, historically reporting low anopheline densities, is projected to develop conditions favorable for malaria transmission in the coming decade. This study evaluated anopheline vector prevalence, seasonality, and climatic influences to assess the district’s vulnerability in the context of India’s malaria elimination target for 2030. From October 2017 to September 2019, vector–climate associations were investigated through longitudinal surveys in six villages and cross-sectional surveys in 22 villages of Kangra district. Temperature and relative humidity were recorded indoors, outdoors, and in water bodies using Onset HOBO data loggers. Immature stages were surveyed in potential breeding habitats, and adult mosquitoes were morphologically identified up to species level. Blood meal sources of fully fed and half-gravid female Anopheles mosquitoes (n = 670) were determined using human and bovine antisera by the simple precipitin test. Exploratory statistical analyses were conducted to assess associations between climatic variables (monthly mean temperature, relative humidity, and rainfall) and mosquito abundance. Anopheles culicifacies s.l. was the primary vector, with man-hour density (MHD) peaking at 15 in September and declining to zero by May. The An. fluviatilis complex was present throughout the year, with peak MHD values of 31 in May and 30 in September. Post-monsoon survival was highest (30% for An. culicifacies and 34% for An. fluviatilis, with longevity up to 42 days), decreasing sharply during winter (6–8%) and the monsoon (4–6%). Anthropophagic indices were low for An. culicifacies (0.08) and An. fluviatilis (0.09). Blood meal sources were identified in 95% (638/670) of females. Six prevalent and fifteen uncommon anopheline species were recorded. Larval and pupal abundance differed significantly among streams, ditches, and rivulets (P < 0.05). Anopheles fluviatilis s.l. persists year-round under favorable microclimatic conditions, whereas An. culicifacies s.l. exhibits strong seasonality and rainfall dependence, remaining absent during the dry summer months. Both vectors are predominantly zoophagic, rest mainly in cattle sheds, and peak during May and September, posing a sustained malaria transmission risk despite low anthropophagy and sporadic secondary vector presence.

Data availability

All data generated or analysed during this study are included in this article.

Abbreviations

°C:

Degree Celsius

AI:

Anthropophagic index

AMSL:

Above mean sea level

An.:

Anopheles

API:

Annual parasite index

CS:

Circumsporozoite

EIP:

Extrinsic incubation period

ELISA:

Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay

HBI:

Human blood index

IEC:

Institutional Ethical Committee

JSB:

Jaswant Singh-Bhattacharji

MHD:

Man hour density


P. falciparum
:

Plasmodium falciparum


P. vivax
:

Plasmodium vivax

RH:

Relative humidity

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Acknowledgements

The authors are thankful to the Director of NIMR (National Institute of Malaria Research) for providing the necessary facilities to undertake this research. We thank the Director and joint Director of state Himachal Pradesh’s health department for facilitating workspace in Chheb, Kangra, Himachal Pradesh, and M.O. of Kangra for providing data of reported cases of malaria. The authors are especially thankful to NIMR’s staff involved in sample collection and processing particularly Mr. Hemant Kumar, Mr. Darshan Kaushik, and Mr. Manish Kashyap, and thank Mr. Mahesh for cross-examination of the vector species.

Funding

This study was supported with funds from the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) grant (letter No. 68/08/2014-NCD-I). There was no role of the funding body in the design of the study and collection, analysis, and interpretation of data and in writing the manuscript. The content of this manuscript is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of ICMR, New Delhi.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Environmental Epidemiology Division, National Institute of Malaria Research-Indian Council of Medical Research, Dwarka Sector 8, New Delhi, 110077, India

    Taru Singh, Narayani Prasad Kar & Ramesh Chand Dhiman

  2. Amity Institute of Biotechnology, Amity University, Sector 125, Noida, Uttar Pradesh, 201313, India

    Taru Singh

  3. Kangra Field Unit, National Institute of Malaria Research-Indian Council of Medical Research, Dwarka Sector 8, New Delhi, 110077, India

    Narayani Prasad Kar

Authors

  1. Taru Singh
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  2. Narayani Prasad Kar
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  3. Ramesh Chand Dhiman
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Contributions

T.S. and R.C.D. conceived and designed the study, analysed/interpreted results. N.P.K. collected the samples. T.S. and N.P.K. collected the data. N.P.K. performed experiments and analysed the data. T.S., and R.C.D. carried out the literature search. R.C.D., and N.P.K. wrote the manuscript. R.C.D. performed the manuscript editing. T.S. and R.C.D. supervised the study and revised the final version of the manuscript. All authors read and approved of the final manuscript.

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Taru Singh or Ramesh Chand Dhiman.

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The authors declare no competing interests.

Ethics approval and consent to participate

This study was approved by the NIMR Institutional Ethical Committee (ECR/65/Inst/DL/2013).

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Singh, T., Kar, N.P. & Dhiman, R.C. Seasonal bionomics of Anopheles mosquitoes in the cold-western Himalayan region of Kangra, Himachal Pradesh, India.
Sci Rep (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-36269-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-36269-9

Keywords


  • Anopheles species
  • Climate change
  • Himachal pradesh
  • Malaria

  • Anopheles culicifacies

  • Anopheles fluviatilis

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