Northern fowl mite (Ornithonyssus sylviarum) in Sweden

Haematophagous mites were collected from the vent region and plumage of chickens in six hobby flocks of ornamental breeds in Sweden, one of which included turkeys. Soiled vent skin and feathers, dermatitis, hyperkeratosis, skin necroses and ulcers were observed in 12 necropsied birds from two of the flocks. The mites were identified as the northern fowl mite Ornithonyssus sylviarum (Mesostigmata: Macronyssidae). This was supported by sequence analysis of a 642‐bp region in the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit 1 (COI) gene (COI) in mites collected from five flocks, which showed 97–99% sequence similarity to O. sylviarum by blast analysis. Pairwise sequence comparisons revealed nucleotide variations in the range of 0–2.8%, whereas amino acid sequences were highly conserved. This paper represents one of very few records of O. sylviarum in European poultry, and is the first to report COI sequence data for O. sylviarum from poultry in Europe.     

翼手恙螨属二新种记述（蜱螨亚纲：恙螨科）

本记述了翼手恙螨属二新种：菊蝠翼手恙螨Chirioptella(Chiroptella)chrysantheurn，sp，nov，粗毛翼手恙螨Chirioptella(Chiroptella)chrysantheurn，sp，nov。     

Comparative effects of form, colour, and pheromone of twospotted spider mite quiescent deutonymphs on male guarding behaviour

Abstract. Effects of form, colour, and pheromone of twospotted spider mite, Tetranychus urticae (Koch), quiescent deutonymphs on adult male guarding behaviour were tested independently and in combination using no-choice and sequential-presentation bioassays. Significantly more males approached yellow stimuli sources than non-yellow sources in all bioassays, suggesting that males orient visually to yellow carotenoid pigments of quiescent deutonymphs. The form and extract (pheromone) of quiescent deutonymphs did not increase male approach frequency. All three cues elicited male arrestment; contrasts of 2 × 3 factorial bioassay data showed that male tactile and/or visual perception of form increased arrestment frequency more than did contact chemoperception of extract, while extract perception caused more arrestments than did visual perception of colour. All three cues prolonged arrestment duration and increased frequency of intermale conflicts near stimuli sources, but form had greater impact than did other cues on the numbers of conflicts observed during coguarding incidents. Significant interactions among stimuli were observed, indicating that presence of multiple stimuli had a synergistic effect on the duration of male response. Males approached and were arrested by all three stimuli combined as often as by quiescent deutonymphs, but arrestments caused by quiescent deutonymphs were longer than those elicited by artificial stimuli. This difference suggests that either additional cues or differences in pheromone release rates are involved in eliciting and prolonging male T. urticae guarding behaviour.     

Temperature-dependent development and oviposition models and life history characteristics of Amblyseius eharai (Amitai et Swirski) (Acari: Phytoseiidae) preying on Tetranychus urticae (Koch) (Acari: Tetranychidae)

Amblyseius eharai, a native predatory mite in Korea, has a potential as a biological control agent for small-sized pests. However, its ecological characteristics remain unclear. Thus, the objective of this study was to construct temperature-dependent development and oviposition models of A. eharai and evaluate its life table parameters. Its development was examined at 11 temperatures (18.0, 20.1, 21.6, 24.0, 24.1, 27.4, 28.6, 30.2, 32.0, 33.2, and 35.9 °C). The life table analysis was conducted using experimental data from 6 temperatures (18.0, 21.6, 24.1, 27.4, 30.2, and 33.2 °C). Development and fecundity of A. ehari were well described by the Briere 1 model and an extreme value function, respectively. The intrinsic rate of increase (r) was the highest (0.2619) at 27.4 °C and the lowest (0.0792) at 18.0 °C. Based on r values of A. eharai obtained in this study and published information of Calepitrimerus vitis, A. ehari has higher r values than C. vitis. A. eharai appears to have good potential as a biological control agent against C. vitis in vineyards.     

Ectoparasite‐induced increase in Drosophila host metabolic rate

Parasites exert numerous effects upon their hosts, including physiological and metabolic changes that can in turn influence various aspects of host life history. Using flow‐through respirometry, we investigated how infection intensity of an ectoparasitic mite (Macrocheles subbadius) affects the respiratory rate (CO₂ production) of its host Drosophila nigrospiracula. Mean fly respiratory rate increased with infection intensity with the strongest effect, a 40% increase relative to uninfected controls, occurring with three mites attached. We also verified the causal relationship between elevated respiration rate and mite attachment by examining changes in host respiration before and after mite exposure. We found that the rate of CO₂ production increased by 11% for individual flies following parasite attachment. Fly locomotor activity was not significantly different between infected and uninfected individuals. Metabolic rate of hosts increased as a result of infection in an intensity dependent manner and was not simply due to changes in host activity. These results demonstrate that parasites can have a significant influence on the energy requirements of their host, which may account for the parasite‐mediated loss in host fitness.     

A new genus of water mites (Acari,Hydrachnidia, Wettinidae) from bromeliad phytotelmata in the Brazilian Atlantic rainforest

Adults of Bromeliacarus cardoso gen. n., sp. n. are described from phytotelmata of Quesnelia arvensis (Vellozo) Mez. (Bromeliaceae) in the subtropical area of the Atlantic rainforest, São Paulo State, Brazil. The new genus Bromeliacarus is proposed and diagnosed, based primarily on the autapomorphic presence of 7–9 pairs of acetabula flanking the gonopore. A possible relationship between Bromeliacarus and other Wettinidae are discussed.     

Multiplex PCR assay for identifying five species of chigger mites in the Republic of Korea

Chigger mites (Trombiculidae), which are known vectors of Orientia tsutsugamushi, have significantly fewer molecular data available than other known species, with a focus on morphological species identification rather than molecular species identification. However, chigger mites are easily damaged because of small size. In addition, natural variation and adult similarity would interrupt accurate classification and identification. Therefore, in this study, a multiple polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method using the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of five frequently occurring species (Euschoengastia koreaensis, Leptotrombidium orientale, Leptotrombidium pallidum, Leptotrombidium palpale, and Leptotrombidium scutellare) among eight species known to mediate the spread of is presented. This is the first report using molecular species identification for the classification method of chigger mites, which was only possible with morphological species identification, and is expected to be used as basic data for vector surveillance.     

Essential oils: effects of application rate and modality on potential for combating northern fowl mite infestations

The northern fowl mite (NFM), Ornithonyssus sylviarum (Mesostigmata: Macronyssidae), is the primary blood‐feeding ectoparasite found on poultry in the U.S.A. Three experiments were conducted in vitro to test the acaricidal properties of cade, garlic, lavender, lemongrass, pine and thyme essential oils against NFM, and to evaluate whether these effects are altered by adjusting oil application rates and application modality (direct vs. vapour contact). Applied at the rate of 0.21 mg/cm², the essential oils of cade, thyme, lemongrass and garlic resulted in higher NFM mortality at 24 h post‐application than lavender and pine oils, and the untreated and ethanol‐treated controls. Cade and thyme were the most consistent and fast‐acting of the essential oils in terms of toxicity to NFM. Cade applied at 0.21 mg/cm² and 0.11 mg/cm² and thyme applied at 0.21 mg/cm² were effective in eliminating NFM within 2 h through direct contact. The modality of application did not affect the efficacy of cade and thyme essential oils. The results suggest that essential oils may be utilized as alternatives to chemical pesticides and could be used as fumigants for the control of NFM.