Relationship between female Anopheles dirus (Diptera: Culicidae) body size and parity in a biting population

Wing length of host-seeking Anopheles dirus Peyton & Harrison was measured in Tha-Mai District, Chanthaburi Province, Thailand. Overall, wing length of nulliparous females (mean = 3.035 mm) was not significantly smaller than that of parous females (mean = 3.039 mm). Wing length was correlated with rainfall and minimum air temperature; females tended to be smaller in the rainy season and larger in the cool and early dry seasons, often in association with a high parity rate. Malaria transmission potential based on daily survivorship was estimated to be highest during the cool and early dry seasons, and during the first half of the rainy season.