Bacterial density and survey of cultivable heterotrophs in the surface water of a freshwater marsh habitat of Anopheles quadrimaculatus larvae (Diptera: Culicidae).

We examined surface water samples collected in September and October 1994 from a freshwater marsh habitat containing larval Anopheles quadrimaculatus mosquitoes. Bacterial densities in direct microscopic counts ranged from 9.7 x 10(5) to 1.3 x 10(7) cells/ml. Densities of cultivable bacteria on trypticase soy agar medium ranged from 1.0 to 1.5 x 10(5) cells/ml. The majority of 888 isolates were gram-positive rods (41%) followed by gram-negative rods (28%). Analysis of the cellular fatty acid profiles of 824 isolates using gas chromatography and Microbial Identification Systems TSBA (Rev. 3.60) library software grouped the bacteria into Bacillus spp. (35%), other gram-positive bacteria (16%), pseudomonads (15%), other gram-negative bacteria including mainly Enterobacteriaceae and Vibrionaceae (21%), and profiles not recognized (13%). Among 33 genera within these groups, the most common were Bacillus, Pseudomonas, Aeromonas, and Arthrobacter.