Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 June 2009
Starting with eggs from a natural habitat the authors were able to raise and breed Bulinus truncatus, the snail vector of schistosomiasis haematobia, under conditions of total and continuous darkness and to complete the life-cycle from egg to egg in 70 days. The rearing of a second generation was interrupted by circumstances beyond the authors’ control. Darkness is shown nevertheless to have a restrictive effect on population growth and the use of covered channels and pipes for irrigation water, although not a complete control measure, should therefore be adopted wherever possible in endemic foci of schistosomiasis haematobia where snail control is necessary.