Effects of local geographic barriers and latitude on population structure in Anopheles punctipennis (Diptera: Culicidae).

We sampled Anopheles punctipennis (Say) from 11 localities throughout Vermont to examine the effects of latitude and two local geographical boundaries, Lake Champlain and the Green Mountains, on the population genetic structure of this species. Thirty-five mitochondrial haplotypes were detected in 104 individuals using a variable region of the COI gene. When latitude was examined, we detected significant structure within localities and among localities within latitudinal regions. For geographic analysis, significant genetic structure was detected only within localities. Estimates of gene flow across geographic regions indicate that the Green Mountains, but not Lake Champlain, is a barrier to dispersal for this species. We found no correlation between genetic and geographic distances for An. punctipennis.