A survey of the Anopheles funestus (Diptera: Culicidae) group of mosquitoes from 10 sites in Kenya with special emphasis on population genetic structure based on chromosomal inversion karyotypes.

We sampled Anopheles funestus Giles mosquitoes from 10 sites in Kenya to determine (1) the different members of this group present at these sites and (2) the population genetic structure of these species based on chromosomal inversion karyotypes with particular reference to the role of the Eastern arm of the Great Rift Valley and geographical distance as barriers to gene flow. Four members of this species group, namely An. funestus s.s., An. parensis, An. leesoni, and An. rivulorum, were found. An. funestus was found almost exclusively inside human dwellings while An. rivulorum was found almost exclusively outdoors. An. parensis was found both indoors and outdoors in comparable proportions. Earlier attempts to collect this group of mosquitoes from two of the sites yielded no mosquitoes, suggesting that numbers of mosquitoes change during the year, sometime reaching zero or very near zero. Significant levels of differentiation were observed among some An. funestus s.s. populations studied. Results suggest that the Rift Valley acts as a barrier to gene flow for An. funestus, but that levels of differentiation are not associated with the geographical distance between populations. The results are discussed in the light of the fact that inversions may have some adaptive significance to differences in environmental conditions.