Community of arthropod ectoparasites of two species of Turdus Linnaeus, 1758 (Passeriformes: Turdidae) in southern Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

• Published in: Parasitology research (1987) Vol. 112; no. 2; pp. 621 - 628
• Main Authors: da Cunha Amaral, Hugo Leonardo, Bergmann, Fabiane Borba, dos Santos, Paulo Roberto Silveira, Krüger, Rodrigo Ferreira, Graciolli, Gustavo
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer-Verlag 01-02-2013; Springer
• Subjects: Animals; Arthropoda; Arthropods - classification; Arthropods - pathogenicity; Biodiversity; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biomedicine; Bird Diseases - epidemiology; Bird Diseases - parasitology; Brazil; Ectoparasitic Infestations - epidemiology; Ectoparasitic Infestations - parasitology; Ectoparasitic Infestations - veterinary; Freshwater; Health aspects; Host-parasite relationships; Immunology; Ixodes; Ixodidae; Medical Microbiology; Menoponidae; Microbiology; Original Paper; Ornithoica vicina; Passeriformes; Philopteridae; Physiological aspects; Prevalence; Songbirds - parasitology; Turdidae; Turdus; Brazil; ASW, Brazil, Rio Grande do Sul; ASW, Brazil; Feather Mite; Chewing Louse; Infestation Rate; Host Species; Average Species Richness
• ISSN: 0932-0113; 1432-1955
• DOI: 10.1007/s00436-012-3174-5

This study was aimed at describing the community of arthropod ectoparasites associated with sympatric populations of
Turdus amaurochalinus
and
Turdus rufiventris
and analyzing the aggregation patterns of the chewing lice species, during reproductive and nonreproductive periods, of both
Turdus
species in three areas of the Atlantic forest in southern Rio Grande do Sul state (RS), Brazil. Altogether, we captured 36 specimens of
T. amaurochalinus
and 53 specimens of
T. rufiventris
. We identified two families of chewing lice, Menoponidae and Philopteridae, with
Myrsidea
and
Brueelia
as the most prevalent and abundant on both host birds. The lowest aggregation levels of chewing lice
Myrsidea
and
Brueelia
occurred during the reproductive period of both host species, suggesting a reproductive synchronization and a dispersion period. The most prevalent feather mite on
T. amaurochalinus
was
Proctophyllodes weigoldi
, and on
T. rufiventris
,
Trouessartia serrana
.
Analges
sp. and
Pteronyssoides
sp. were not observed on
T. rufiventris
. We identified three species of ticks;
Ixodes auritulus
was the most prevalent and abundant on the birds.
Ornithoica vicina
was the only hippoboscid fly collected, and only on
T. amaurochalinus
. The richness of ectoparasites was greater on
T. amaurochalinus
than on
T. rufiventris
. For
T. amaurochalinus
, the mean richness was lesser in winter compared to spring and autumn; however, we observed no variation in the mean richness of ectoparasites for
T. rufiventris
during the same seasons.