Climatic effects on the distribution of ant- and bat fly-associated fungal ectoparasites (Ascomycota,Laboulbeniales)

Laboulbeniales (Ascomycota: Laboulbeniomycetes) are obligate ectoparasitic fungi of arthropods with a worldwide distribution. Their effects on host physiology and behaviour as well as their ecology have recently gained wider attention. One aspect that is virtually unknown regarding Laboulbeniales and arthropod-associated fungi in general, is how abiotic factors shape the distribution of these parasites. We used ant- and bat fly-associated Laboulbeniales to study whether climatic elements play a role in the distribution of fungal species. We collected uninfected and Laboulbeniales-infected insects belonging to three species: bat flies Nycteribia schmidlii and Penicillidia conspicua (Diptera: Nycteribiidae) and the ant Myrmica scabrinodis (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). We used climatic variables and performed statistical analyses to explain the distribution of Laboulbeniales infection. Our results show a higher likelihood of Laboulbeniales presence in habitats with low annual mean temperature and humidity, suggesting that climatic elements can considerably shape the distribution of Laboulbeniales species.     

Seasonal reproduction and host infestation rates for nycteribiids of the large bentwing bat

Large numbers of the nycteribiid species Nycteribia parilis vicaria Maa, Penicillidia (Penicillidia) oceanica Bigot and Penicillidia (Penicillidia) Maa (Diptera: Nycteribiidae) were collected from the bat Miniopterus schreibersii Kuhl (Chiroptera: Vespertilionidae) during a study on this bat's population genetics conducted largely in southern Australia. Bats were trapped in all seasons and at a number of locations throughout the ranges of the nycteribiids. Nycteribia parilis vicaria was the most common species captured. Gravid females of the three species were trapped in spring and summer and gravid female P. (P.) oceanica and N. parilis vicaria were trapped in autumn. Newly emerged adults of P. (P.) oceanica and N. parilis vicaria were captured in spring and autumn. Nycteribiid loads for individual bats were low, and there was no direct evidence of a detrimental effect on bats.     

How a haemosporidian parasite of bats gets around: the genetic structure of a parasite,vector and host compared

Parasite population structure is often thought to be largely shaped by that of its host. In the case of a parasite with a complex life cycle, two host species, each with their own patterns of demography and migration, spread the parasite. However, the population structure of the parasite is predicted to resemble only that of the most vagile host species. In this study, we tested this prediction in the context of a vector‐transmitted parasite. We sampled the haemosporidian parasite Polychromophilus melanipherus across its European range, together with its bat fly vector Nycteribia schmidlii and its host, the bent‐winged bat Miniopterus schreibersii. Based on microsatellite analyses, the wingless vector, and not the bat host, was identified as the least structured population and should therefore be considered the most vagile host. Genetic distance matrices were compared for all three species based on a mitochondrial DNA fragment. Both host and vector populations followed an isolation‐by‐distance pattern across the Mediterranean, but not the parasite. Mantel tests found no correlation between the parasite and either the host or vector populations. We therefore found no support for our hypothesis; the parasite population structure matched neither vector nor host. Instead, we propose a model where the parasite's gene flow is represented by the added effects of host and vector dispersal patterns.     

Bat ectoparasites (Nycteribiidae,Streblidae, Siphonaptera,Heteroptera, Mesostigmata,Argasidae, and Ixodidae) from Algeria

Twenty two species of ectoparasites (Family Nycteribiidae: Nycteribia (Listropoda) schmidlii schmidlii, Nycteribia (Nycteribia) latreillii, Nycteribia (Nycteribia) pedicularia, Penicillidia (Penicillidia) dufourii, and Phthiridium biarticulatum; Family Streblidae: Brachytarsina (Brachytarsina) flavipennis and Raymondia huberi; Order Siphonaptera: Rhinolophopsylla unipectinata arabs, Nycteridopsylla longiceps, Araeopsylla gestroi, Ischnopsyllus intermedius, and Ischnopsyllus octactenus; Order Heteroptera: Cimex pipistrelli, Cimex lectularius, and Cacodmus vicinus; Class Arachnida: Order Mesostigmata: Spinturnix myoti and Eyndhovenia euryalis; Order Ixodida: Family Argasidae: Argas transgariepinus and Argas vespertilionis; Family Ixodidae: Hyalomma dromedarii, Ixodes ricinus, and Ixodes vespertilionis) were recovered from 19 bat species in Algeria. New host records for bats are recorded for the first time: N. schmidlii from Rh. clivosus and R. cystops; N. latreillii from Rh. blasii and P. gaisleri; R. huberi from Rh. clivosus; C. pipistrelli from E. isabellinus and H. savii; C. vicinus from E. isabellinus; S. myoti from P. gaisleri; E. euryalis from P. gaisleri and Rh. blasii; A. vespertilionis from P. gaisleri; I. ricinus from T. teniotis and Rh. hipposideros and H. dromedarii from P. kuhlii. Raymondia huberi is recorded for the first time from Algeria.