Immature stages of Culicidae were collected in artificial containers in three conditions, between November 1997 and November 1998, in the rural area of São José dos Pinhais, Paraná, Brazil. Eight species were identified: Culex (Culex) eduardoi Casal & Garcia, 1968, Culex (Culex) acharistus Root, 1927, Culex (Culex) group coronator, Culex (Lutzia) bigoti Bellardi, 1962, Aedes (Protomacleaya) terrens (Walker, 1856), Limatus durhamii Theobald, 1901, Txorhynchites theobaldi (Dyar & Knab, 1906) and Phoniomyia sp. The Berger & Parker index was obtained for each condition and kind of container. These results were compared with those of Silva & Lozovei (1996) in the urban area of Curitiba. A greater number of species was observed in the rural area, with different dominance under each condition. The introduction of artificial containers can not show the number of Culicidae species that are present in an area, but it can indicate the species that show the greatest adaptability to environmental modifications produced by human activity.
Culicidae; artificial containers; ecology