Ceratopogonidae (Leptoconops, nil-nik)

Small insects 1.5to 5 mm long

Antennae about 15segments
Spotted wings, covered with hairs
Mouthparts are short, males do not take blood meals
Eggs laid on mud, moist habitat
swarm over the head biting the face and neck and exposed body parts
Lesions- multiple vesicles with intense itching
Ref: Belisario and de Leon.2015. Medical Parasitology in the Philippines
Ceratopogonidae – Biting midges
holometabolous
Disease causing agents transmitted by
Culicoides
Biting habits Reproduction
• Only the female midge bites and • Female midges take blood to
takes blood. provide a source of protein for
• a chemical in the saliva is egg production
injected to prevent blood • females may also be autogenous
clotting.
• Feeding takes approximately • 25 to 110 eggs per bloodmeal
two to five minutes.
• biting activity is around dawn
and dusk.
• (Connelly & Day, 2011)
 Medical & Veterinary importance
•vectors of avian trypanosomes belonging to T. bennetti group (Svobodová,Dolnik, Čepička and
Rádrová , 2017)

•primarily a nuisance and the major medical issue associated with Culicoides is
allergic reactions to the bites.
• In Central and South America, western and central Africa, and some Caribbean
islands, biting midges are the vectors of filarial worms in the genus Mansonella.

•African Horsesickness virus in equines that is confined primarily to Africa

• and Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease virus in ruminants found in North America
•Some equines experience allergic reactions to the bites, resulting in equine allergic
dermatitis, affecting the withers, mane, tail and ears of the animal.
•http://entnemdept.ufl.edu/creatures/aquatic/biting_midges.htm