Beji M. auteur aut IRD Rhim A. auteur aut IRD Roiz David auteur aut IRD Bouattour A. auteur aut IRD text journalArticle eng text/pdf reformatted digital access Background: The Culex pipiens complex (Diptera: Culicidae) includes the most widespread mosquito species in the world. Members of this complex are the primary enzootic and epidemic vectors of the West Nile virus (genus Flavivirus) in several countries. The two recognized forms of Cx. pipiens (Linnaeus, 1758) - pipiens and molestus - exhibit behavioral and physiological differences. Natural populations of Cx. pipiens were investigated in several sites in Tunisia to evaluate the ecophysiological and molecular characteristics of their forms. Results: The analysis showed the sympatric presence of Cx. pipiens forms and hybrids in all studied sites. Of all the tested larvae of Cx. pipiens, 33.5% were identified as pipiens, 30.8% were identified as molestus, and 35.6% were identified as hybrids. The molestus and hybrid forms were positively correlated with urban habitats and belowground sites while the pipiens form was positively correlated with rural habitats and aboveground sites. Autogeny was expressed in all types of habitats and breeding sites. By contrast with the microsatellite CQ11, the two molecular markers, ace-2 and cytb, did not allow differentiation between the Cx. pipiens forms. Conclusions: Our study shows the ubiquitous distribution and the plasticity of the different forms of Cx. pipiens in a wide range of ecological conditions. It suggests that the behavioral traits assigned to the forms of Cx. pipiens seem to be more flexible than previously assumed. Our analysis also proves that the microsatellite CQ11 remains an efficient tool for distinguishing between Cx. pipiens forms. specialized Culex pipiens Form molestus Form pipiens Hybrid Tunisia Ecology Autogeny Microsatellite CQ11 Genetic diversity TUNISIE 052 10 art. 327 [10 p.] 2017 1756-3305 https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010070382 10.1186/s13071-017-2265-7 1756-3305 [F B010070382] https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/fdi:010070382 https://horizon.documentation.ird.fr/exl-doc/pleins_textes/divers17-08/010070382.pdf IRD - Base Horizon / Pleins textes 2017-09-05 2023-07-11 fdi:010070382 fre