[Anopheles funestus and rice agriculture in the Madagascar highlands]

An exhaustive study of the potential habitats of Anopheles funestus was led during 1992 in Ankazobe on the Plateau of Madagascar, 95 km northwest of the capital Tananarive. The rice fields provide more than 90% of the positive habitats versus less than 10% for the nonhuman biotopes. Larva are especially abundant on the surfaces of the rice during grain head formation and maturation. The dense vegetation coverage provides them with shade and protection against predators. After harvesting, the follows can be filled with water and wild vegetation, and then also provide an important share of the habitats. The rice fields are omnipresent on the Plateau where they supply the basis of local alimentation. A. funestus then constitutes a serious risk for all of the villages. The role of the rice fields as habitats for A. funestus has already been noted in Kenya but in West Africa the rice fields do not host this species, even if this species is very abundant in the other types of habitats.