A survey of wasp sting injuries in urban Auckland from December to April in 1991/2 and 1992/3.

AIM: To determine the numbers and the seasonal variations in patients seeking medical consultation for wasp sting injuries in urban Auckland. METHOD: A monthly record of the number of people seeking treatment for wasp stings was kept by 50 general practitioners from 18 medical centres and accident and emergency departments from three hospitals in urban Auckland. RESULTS: From December to April, 47 people in 1991/2 and 49 in 1992/3 received treatment for wasp sting injuries from the family practitioners surveyed. In addition, 27 people and 35 people received treatment at the three accident and emergency clinics over the same time period in 1991/2 and 1992/3 respectively. Paper wasps were found to be responsible for the majority of the sting injuries reported. CONCLUSION: Our data indicates that wasp stings have a significant impact on the health of the Auckland population and indicates the urgent need for more detailed studies in other parts of New Zealand.

Habitat preferences and carcase colonization by sheep blowflies in the northern North Island of New Zealand.

In urban Auckland, from September 1991 to May 1992, only six specimens of the Australian sheep blowfly, Lucilia cuprina, were collected in farmed parkland and in garden habitats. The common green blowfly, Lucilia sericata, was the most common calliphorid trapped in these habitats. Neither of the two Lucilia species were found in native bush remnants in urban or rural areas where Calliphora hilli was dominant. Similarly very few L.cuprina (0.3% of the total) were trapped in rural rubbish tips in January and February where the majority of blowflies were again L.sericata. These results are compared with data collected from pastoral habitats, where L.cuprina is the major cause of flystrike. Lucilia cuprina was reared from five out of ninety-nine carcases found in rural areas. Calliphora stygia and L.sericata were the most common blowflies colonizing carrion and were reared from 59% and 51% of the carcases respectively.