Ecological diversity of Anopheline mosquitoes in highland agroecosystems in relation to microclimate dynamics:...

Agroecosystems in tropical regions provide diverse aquatic habitats that support Anopheles mosquitoes, which are malaria vectors. Understanding species composition, behavior, and environmental associations is essential for targeted vector control, however, ecological data from rice-growing regions in Indonesia remain limited. This study examined the diversity, spatiotemporal distribution, and ecological preferences of Anopheles mosquitoes in the rice field landscapes of the Banding Agung District, Ogan Komering Ulu Selatan Regency, South Sumatra Province, Indonesia. Adult mosquitoes were collected monthly from April to September using human landing catch (HLC), animal-baited traps (ABT), and morning resting collections, while larval surveys were conducted across eight aquatic habitat types with concurrent measurements of environmental parameters (temperature, pH, salinity, illumination, and relative humidity). Relative abundance, human biting rate (HBR), and animal biting rate (ABR) were calculated. Principal component analysis (PCA) was used to explore habitat differentiation, and response surface models were used to predict HBR and ABR based on temperature and relative humidity. A total of 6899 mosquitoes were collected, which were dominated by Culex spp. (56.6 %) and Anopheles spp. (15.6 %), with An. vagus was most abundant species across larval and adult collections. PCA revealed that pH and illumination positively influenced several Anopheles species, whereas temperature, vegetation, and predator presence acted as contrasting drivers. Adult catches revealed strong exophagic and exophilic behaviors. Response surface models demonstrated that HBR peaked at ∼23.5 °C and >88 % RH with good predictive performance (R² = 0.656; RMSE = 0.212), whereas ABR peaked at ∼22 °C and >97 % RH but with low accuracy (R² = 0.081; RMSE = 5.915). These findings highlight species-specific climatic sensitivities and the importance of integrating ecological and climatic factors into malaria vector surveillance. This study represents the first integrated ecological assessment of Anopheles in a tropical highland rice-farming landscape, filling a key knowledge gap in malaria vector ecology.