Description of the feeding preferences of triatominae in the Chagas disease surveillance study for the State of Pernambuco, Brazil (Hemiptera: Reduviidae).

INTRODUCTION:: Studying the feeding preferences of triatomines is an important entomological surveillance tool, since continuous surveillance of the disease is necessary. METHODS:: The precipitin reaction was used to describe the feeding preferences of triatomines along with their natural infection by flagellates similar to Tyrpanosoma cruzi. Six hundred eighty-seven insects were examined, including Triatoma brasiliensis, Triatoma pseudomaculata, and Panstrongylus lutzi. RESULTS:: Sixty-nine (10%) of 687 triatomines examined tested positive for flagellates similar to T. cruzi, and 8 (1.2%) of these fed on human blood. CONCLUSIONS:: This study found potential transmitters of Chagas disease both inside and outside the domiciliar environment.