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Chewing lice (Insecta, Phthiraptera) and feather mites (Acari, Astigmata) associated with birds of the Cerrado in Central Brazil

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Abstract

The association of chewing lice and feather mites with wild birds of riparian forest was investigated in the Cerrado biome, Tocantins State, Brazil. The birds were captured with mist nets between July 2008 and March 2009. Ectoparasites were collected by the dust-ruffling technique. Infestation rates were determined by the sampling prevalence, abundance, and mean intensity of ectoparasites. A total of 1,479 chewing lice were collected that were distributed in 3 families and 18 genera, of which 15 taxa were identified to the species level. Sixteen genera of feather mites were found, and 10 species were identified. A high prevalence rate of chewing lice and feather mites was found in non-Passeriformes (66.7 and 50.0 %) and Passeriformes (57.8 and 75.6 %) birds. New host–parasite associations were registered for two species of chewing lice and for four species of feather mites, thus expanding the geographical distribution in Brazil of six chewing lice species. This is the first study of the ectoparasites of wild birds to be conducted in this region of Brazil.

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Acknowledgments

Many thanks for the big help of Michel P. Valim (Parasitological Department, Federal University of Minas Gerais—UFMG), whose participation in different steps of this project, including the identification of all parasites, was fundamental to its conclusion. Thanks to the Laboratory of Ectoparasitology and the Laboratory of Ecology of Insects of UFMG for permitting the use of its installations and to my friend Andrey J. de Andrade for his help. The logistic support offered by Professor Renato Torres and Maria Amélia (Ecotropical Institute) in Tocantins was critical to the completion of this project.

Funding

This research was supported by Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa de Minas Gerais (FAPEMIG), Brazil. CNPq provides a scholarship to Antonini, Y.

Conflict of interest

The authors have no conflicts of interest concerning the work reported in this paper.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory for Biodiversity, Department of Biological Sciences, Institute of Biological and Exact Sciences, Federal University of Ouro Preto, Campus Morro do Cruzeiro, Bauxita, 35.400-000, Ouro Preto, MG, Brazil

    Alexandre Magno Junqueira Enout & Yasmine Antonini

  2. Laboratory for Insects Behavior, Department of Ecology, Institute of Biological Sciences, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Avenida Antônio Carlos, 6627, caixa postal 486, 31.270-901, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil

    Débora Nogueira Campos Lobato & Francisco Carvalho Diniz

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  1. Alexandre Magno Junqueira Enout
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  2. Débora Nogueira Campos Lobato
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  4. Yasmine Antonini
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Correspondence to Yasmine Antonini.

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Enout, A.M.J., Lobato, D.N.C., Diniz, F.C. et al. Chewing lice (Insecta, Phthiraptera) and feather mites (Acari, Astigmata) associated with birds of the Cerrado in Central Brazil. Parasitol Res 111, 1731–1742 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-012-3016-5

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