A newly recognized species in the Anopheles (Nyssorhynchus) albitarsis complex (Diptera: Culicidae) from Puerto Carreno, Colombia. Am J Trop Med Hyg

Abstract. We report a previously unrecognized mosquito species from eastern Colombia belonging to the Anopheles (Nyssorhynchus) albitarsis complex. We provisionally name this taxon An. albitarsis species “F. ” Until now, the only members of the Albitarsis Complex recorded from north of the Amazon River have been An. marajoara and a putative phylogenetic species, An. albitarsis “E. ” As with the other largely monomorphic species in the complex, we were able to detect its presence using ribosomal DNA internal transcribed spacer 2 (rDNA ITS2) and partial white gene sequences. Unlike An. marajoara, but in common with other species in the complex, An. albitarsis F lacks the white gene fourth intron. This species is sympatric with An. marajoara in a malaria-endemic area in Puerto Carreño, Vichada Department, Colombia. It could be an important current and/or historical vector of human malaria parasites at this locality and, depending on its actual distribution, elsewhere in Colombia and Venezuela