[Durgical](https://durgical.com/en/) › [DurgiPedia](https://durgical.com/en/durgipedia/) › [Microbiology](https://durgical.com/en/microbiology/) › [Arthropod vectors](https://durgical.com/en/microbiology/groups/arthropod-vectors/) › Lutzomyia [Microbiology](https://durgical.com/en/microbiology/) · [Arthropod vectors](https://durgical.com/en/microbiology/groups/arthropod-vectors/) # Lutzomyia - Parasite - Exam priority: medium A tiny hairy fly that bites at nightfall. It spreads leishmaniasis and Carrión disease and breeds in damp soil. Updated 2026-11-01 Also called: sand fly, phlebotomine ## Key points - Tiny, hairy, wings in a V, hopping flight: that is the sand fly. - Terrestrial larvae in damp organic matter: removing standing water does not control it. - New World: Lutzomyia; Old World: Phlebotomus. - Transmits Leishmania and Bartonella bacilliformis (Oroya fever). - It passes through ordinary bed nets: a fine treated mesh is needed. ## At a glance **Shape** Body and wings covered in hairs; at rest the wings are held up in a V **Family** Psychodidae, subfamily Phlebotominae **Type** Blood-feeding dipteran insect (vector), New World phlebotomine **Size** Very small, 2 to 3 millimetres: it passes through many ordinary bed nets ## Morphology - Yellowish hairy adult with long legs and pointed wings raised in a V. - Short hopping flight close to the ground. - Terrestrial, not aquatic, larvae that live in damp organic matter. ## Transmission - The female takes up Leishmania amastigotes when biting; in her gut they become promastigotes that move to the proboscis. - At the next bite she injects promastigotes into the skin. - It transmits Bartonella bacilliformis (Carrión disease) in Andean valleys. **Reservoir:** Wild mammals (sloths, opossums, rodents) for cutaneous leishmaniasis; Dogs for visceral leishmaniasis; Humans for Bartonella bacilliformis **Vector:** Cutaneous leishmaniasis in Colombia: forest species such as Lu. trapidoi, Lu. gomezi and Lu. panamensis; visceral: Lu. longipalpis; Carrión: Lu. verrucarum and related species. Some authors now use new genera (Nyssomyia, Psychodopygus, Pintomyia). ### Isolation precautions What the care team adds to standard precautions. - Standard ## Life cycle - The female lays dozens of eggs in damp, dark places rich in organic matter (cracks, leaf litter, roots). - Larvae live in the soil and feed on organic debris; they need no open water. - After four larval stages they pupate, attached to the substrate. - Egg to adult takes several weeks. - The adult rests by day in dark places and bites at dusk and at night. ## Virulence factors - Its saliva contains substances that dilate vessels and modulate skin immunity, which favours Leishmania infection. - Many species live in forest: they bite people who enter it (soldiers, farmers, miners). ## Diseases it causes - Cutaneous, mucosal and visceral leishmaniasis [Leishmaniasis →](https://durgical.com/en/conditions/leishmaniasis/) - Carrión disease (Oroya fever and verruga peruana) from Bartonella bacilliformis ## Diagnosis - Capture with CDC or Shannon light traps and human landing catches. - Identification by the morphology of the genitalia and spermatheca (needs mounting) and by molecular methods. - Detection of Leishmania in captured females by dissection or PCR. ## Treatment Does not apply to the insect. It is controlled with pyrethroid insecticides on fine-mesh nets and walls, although scattered forest breeding sites limit control. Drug class only; doses and regimens are set by the clinician from the current guideline. ## Prevention - Fine-mesh insecticide-treated nets (e.g. deltamethrin). - Repellent, long sleeves and avoiding the forest at dusk and at night. - Indoor spraying in household foci and clearing leaf litter and organic matter near the house. ## In Colombia Cutaneous leishmaniasis is one of the vector-borne diseases most often notified to SIVIGILA, mainly in forest areas, and most cases are caused by Leishmania panamensis. The visceral form, carried by Lu. longipalpis, occurs in foci in dry valleys and on the Caribbean coast. Carrión disease has been described in the south of the country. ## Memory aid Small, hairy and long-legged, it hops instead of flying: the sand fly bites at nightfall and needs no puddles, leaf litter is enough. ## Test yourself Think of the answer, then tap the question to see it. ## Why does removing standing water not control Lutzomyia? Because its larvae are terrestrial and live in damp soil with organic matter, not in water. ## Which bacterium does Lutzomyia transmit and which disease does it cause? Bartonella bacilliformis, the agent of Carrión disease: Oroya fever (acute phase with anaemia) and verruga peruana. ## Which Leishmania form does the sand fly inject when it bites? The promastigote, which macrophages engulf in the skin and which turns into an amastigote. ## Why are fine-mesh nets recommended against sand flies? Because they measure only 2 to 3 millimetres and pass through the mesh of many ordinary nets. [Add to my cards (4)](https://durgical.app/estudiar/?add=/en/microbiology/lutzomyia/) ## Related - [Leishmania (Viannia) panamensis, L. braziliensis and L. guyanensis](https://durgical.com/en/microbiology/leishmania-panamensis-l-braziliensis-and-l-guyanensis/) - [Leishmania infantum](https://durgical.com/en/microbiology/leishmania-infantum/) - [Bartonella](https://durgical.com/en/microbiology/bartonella/) ## Related conditions - [Leishmaniasis](https://durgical.com/en/conditions/leishmaniasis/) ## What the colours mean **Gram-positive** Thick peptidoglycan wall: stains purple. **Gram-negative** Thin wall with an outer membrane: stains pink. **Acid-fast** Lipid-rich wall (mycobacteria): Ziehl–Neelsen stain. [← Back to the group: Arthropod vectors](https://durgical.com/en/microbiology/groups/arthropod-vectors/) Educational content on microorganisms; not a treatment guide and no substitute for a health professional's advice. No doses are given. Sources: [Leishmaniasis](https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/leishmaniasis) (WHO, 2023); [CDC - DPDx - Leishmaniasis](https://www.cdc.gov/dpdx/leishmaniasis/index.html) (CDC, 2024); [Carrion's Disease: More Than a Sand Fly–Vectored Illness](https://journals.plos.org/plospathogens/article?id=10.1371/journal.ppat.1005863) (PLoS Pathogens, 2016); Parasitosis humanas (Botero y Restrepo), 5.ª ed. (Corporación para Investigaciones Biológicas (CIB), 2012). ## **Spotted a mistake?** We are always improving for the community. Tell us what is wrong and our team will review it. Report a mistake Representative model, for educational purposes only. --- Source: https://durgical.com/en/microbiology/lutzomyia/ License: CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Cite as: DurgiPedia (durgical.com), https://durgical.com/en/microbiology/lutzomyia/