Risk map of transmission of urogenital schistosomiasis by Bulinus truncatus (Audouin, 1827) (Mollusca Gastropoda, Bulinidae) in Spain and Portugal

Abstract

We present a geographical distribution map of Bulinus truncatus based on historical and current localities in Spain and Portugal, that corresponds to the risk map of urogenital schistosomiasis for this freshwater snail. We reviewed samples of the species deposited at the Museu de Ciències Naturals of Barcelona and the Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales of Madrid, together with our own data, including some unpublished contributions. This map will help determine the optimal area for this species and identify areas of greatest risk for urogenital schistosomiasis in the two countries. We emphasize that global change and climate change may favour the presence of both the vector (B. truncatus) and the parasite (Schistosoma haematobium) in Spain and Portugal.