Mosquito Larvae of New Guinea — Bick 
393 
The most conspicuous feature of all areas was 
the ubiquitous coconut plantation. In most 
instances, puddles and artificial containers 
were common, whereas ponds, lakes, and 
marshes were nearly always absent. New 
habitats developed rapidly. The most out- 
standing of these were puddles and artificial 
containers. Moreover, each area was under 
intensive military control and, in several, 
thorough initial surveys were delayed be- 
cause of enemy interference. 
The above factors undoubtedly influenced 
the data. However, since each area was bor- 
dered by an accessible fringe roughly repre- 
sentative of natural conditions, and since 
collections were from both base periphery 
and from the more artificial base site, it is 
believed that significant data on the habitat 
potentials of the various species have been 
obtained. 
The collecting areas and dates are: 
Milne Bay, Papua (10° 20' S/150° 30' E). 
Gamadodo: September 1943 through 
March 1944; September through No- 
vember 1944. 
Wagga Wagga: October through Novem- 
ber 1944. 
Hilimoi: August through November 1944. 
Kana Kopa: October 1943 through Jan- 
uary 1944; September through Novem- 
ber 1944. 
Morobe, Northeast New Guinea (7° 45' S/ 
147° 35' E): November 1943. 
Finschhafen, Northeast New Guinea (6° 35' 
S/147° 50' E): January through June 1944. 
Saidor, Northeast New Guinea (5° 40' S/ 
146° 30' E): February through June 1944. 
Woendi, Padaido Islands, Dutch New Guinea 
(1° 15' S/136° 20' E) : July through October 
1944. 
Amsterdam Island, Dutch New Guinea 
(0° 20' S/132° 10' E): August through 
October 1944. 
METEOROLOGICAL DATA 
The only data available were those of the 
temporary Navy Station at Milne Bay and the 
Australian Station at Samarai. Rainfall and 
temperature records for 1943 and 1944 were 
obtained from the Navy, and the long-time 
averages from Samarai. Since the majority of 
collections were from Milne Bay, data from 
these sources are indicative of conditions 
under which most of the collections were 
obtained. 
Figure 1 compares the 29-year average 
monthly rainfall with that for the collecting 
period. It also compares the 9-year average 
monthly maximum, mean, and minimum 
temperatures with those for the collecting 
period. 
The 29-year average rainfall shows no great 
monthly variation. Rainfall during the col- 
lecting period paralleled the long-time aver- 
age, except during April and June 1944, when 
brief torrential rains increased the amount to 
far above the average. No collections were 
obtained from Milne Bay during these 
months. These data demonstrate an absence 
of definite wet and dry seasons. This is in 
marked contrast to the much-discussed wet 
and dry seasons which have played such an 
important role in mosquito bionomics in 
other tropical areas, notably the Solomon 
Islands and the New Hebrides. Similarly, 
temperature data show but slight seasonal 
variation. 
No seasonal fluctuation in numbers of 
species or numbers of individuals of mosquito 
larvae was observed. It is concluded that 
neither rainfall nor temperature was a factor 
limiting the mosquito population during any 
season of the year. 
METHODS 
Distribution 
Data were obtained from: (1) literature 
records; (2) collections from the detail-study 
areas; (3) unpublished records of A. H. 
Humes, W. M. Rogoff, and T. K. Ruebush, 
who were in New Guinea during periods 
corresponding to these collections. 
All records available in the literature on 
New Guinea are listed for each of the 47 
