Hostname: page-component-6766d58669-bkrcr Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2026-05-19T22:51:47.246Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Seasonal changes in the infestation parameters of the sucking louse, Linognathoides laeviusculus (Phthiraptera: Anoplura: Polyplacidae), infesting Richardson’s ground squirrel (Rodentia: Sciuridae) in Manitoba, Canada

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 July 2015

Matthew E.M. Yunik ,
Jane M. Waterman  and
Terry D. Galloway
Matthew E.M. Yunik*
Affiliation:
Department of Entomology, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada R3T 2N2
Jane M. Waterman
Affiliation:
Department of Biological Sciences, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada R3T 2N2
Terry D. Galloway
Affiliation:
Department of Entomology, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada R3T 2N2
*
1 Corresponding author (e-mail: matt.yunik@gmail.com
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Linognathoides laeviusculus (Grube) (Phthiraptera: Anoplura: Polyplacidae) is a louse found on holarctic ground squirrels but little is known about how the life history, physiology, and hibernation of the host influence its population dynamics. Two hundred and fourteen Richardson’s ground squirrels (Urocitellus richardsonii (Sabine); Rodentia: Sciuridae) were trapped over the summer of 2010, and the age, sex, and mass of all euthanised squirrels were recorded. Squirrels were hand-washed to remove lice, which were then identified to species, stage of development, and sex. Linognathoides laeviusculus was the only louse collected. In total, 5057 lice were collected with 63.6% of the squirrels infested at a mean intensity of 37.2 (90% confidence interval=29.98–48.66). Two peaks in prevalence of L. laeviusculus infestations occurred (April and mid-June), and one peak in intensity (June). Juvenile squirrels had higher prevalence and mean intensity when compared to adults. Adult male squirrels had higher mean intensity compared to adult females. Adult lice comprised most of the population infesting emerging adult squirrels in the spring but nymphs predominated for most of the active season of the host. Infestations were highly aggregated with k=0.203 and index of discrepancy D=0.813. The seasonal dynamics of L. laeviusculus appear to be strongly correlated with the annual cycle of the squirrel host.

Résumé

Linognathoides laeviusculus (Grube) (Phthiraptera: Anoplura: Polyplacidae) est un pou signalé sur les spermophiles de la région holarctique. On connait peu de choses sur l’influence des cycles biologiques, de la physiologie et de l’hibernation des spermophiles sur la dynamique des populations de L. laeviusculus. Nous avons piégé deux cent quatorze spermophiles de Richardson (Urocitellus richardsonii (Sabine); Rodentia: Sciuridae) au cours de l’été 2010, et noté l’âge, le sexe et la masse de chacun. Les poux ont été retirés en lavant les spermophiles euthanasiés à la main. En tout, 5057 poux ont été récoltés, classés par stades de croissance, sexe, et identifiés à l’espèce. Linognathoides laeviusculus est la seule espèce de pou qui a été récoltée. La prévalence de l’infestation était de 63.6% avec une intensité moyenne de 37.2 (IC 90%=29.98–48.66). La prévalence a culminé en avril et à la mi-juin, et l’intensité a atteint son apogée en juin. Les valeurs de prévalence et d’intensité moyenne des jeunes spermophiles avaient supérieures à celle des adultes, et l’intensité moyenne était plus élevée chez les adultes mâles que chez les adultes femelles. Les spermophiles adultes émergents au printemps étaient surtout infestés par des poux adultes, mais les nymphes étaient prédominantes durant la période d’activité de l’hôte. Les répartitions des infestations étaient très contagieuses (k=0.203) avec un index de divergence (D) de 0.813. Il semble que la dynamique saisonnière des populations de L. laeviusculus soit fortement corrélée au cycle annuel de son hôte, le spermophile.

Information

Type
Behaviour & Ecology
Information
The Canadian Entomologist , Volume 148 , Issue 2 , April 2016 , pp. 143 - 150
Copyright
© Entomological Society of Canada 2015 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Article purchase

Temporarily unavailable

Footnotes

Subject editor: Kateryn Rochon

References

Ali, S.R. and Sweatman, G.K. 1966. Effect of age, sex, and hormone treatment of the mouse on the level of infestation by Rhipicephalus sanguineus larvae. The Journal of Parasitology, 52: 407–412.Google Scholar
Bell, J.F., Stewart, S.J., and Neslon, W.A. 1982. Transplant of acquired resistance to Polyplax serrata (Phthiraptera: Hoplopleuridae) in skin allografts to athymic mice. Journal of Medical Entomology, 19: 164–168.Google Scholar
Burgess, G.D. 1955. Arthropod ectoparasites of Richardson’s ground squirrel. The Journal of Parasitology, 41: 639–640.Google Scholar
Dozieres, A., Pisanue, B., Gerriet, O., Lapeyre, C., Stuyck, J., and Chapuis, J.L. 2010. Macroparasites of Pallas’ squirrels (Callosciurus erythraeus) introduced into Europe. Veterinary Parasitology, 172: 172–176.Google Scholar
Durden, L.A. 1987. Influence of host size on louse infestation densities of eastern chipmunks (Tamias striatus). Journal of Parasitology, 73: 426–427.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Durden, L.A. and Musser, G.G. 1994. The sucking lice (Insecta, Anoplura) of the world: a taxonomic checklist with records of mammalian hosts and geographical distributions. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History, 218: 1–90.Google Scholar
Ferris, G.F. 1951. The sucking lice. Memoirs of the Pacific Coast Entomological Society, 1: 1–320.Google Scholar
Fishman, A.P. and Lyman, C.P. 1961. Hibernation in mammals. Circulation, 24: 434–445.Google Scholar
Folstad, I. and Karter, A.J. 1992. Parasites, bright males, and the immune competence handicap. The American Naturalist, 139: 603–622.Google Scholar
Galloway, T.D. 2012. Ectoparasites of rabbits and hares in Manitoba, Canada, with observations on age-specific dispersal in Haemodipsus setoni (Phthiraptera: Anoplura: Polyplacidae). The Canadian Entomologist, 144: 439–446.Google Scholar
Hendricks, D.E. 1967. The ectoparasites and other arthropod associates of the 13-lined ground squirrel. Research Bulletin of Purdue University, 817: 1–15.Google Scholar
Hilton, D.F. and Mahrt, J.L. 1971. Ectoparasites from three species of Spermophilus (Rodentia: Sciuridae) in Alberta. Canadian Journal of Zoology, 49: 1497–1499.Google Scholar
Holdenried, R., Evans, F.C., and Longanecker, D.S. 1951. Host-parasite-disease relationships in a mammalian community in the central coast range of California. Ecological Monographs, 21: 1–18.Google Scholar
Holekamp, K.E. 1984. Dispersal in ground-dwelling sciurids. In The biology of ground-dwelling squirrels. Edited by J.O. Murie and G.R. Michener. University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln, Nebraska, United States of America. Pp. 295–321.Google Scholar
Kennedy, M.J. and Newman, R.A. 1986. Synopsis of the parasites of vertebrates of Canada: ectoparasites of terrestrial mammals. Queen’s Printer, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kim, K.C. 1985. Evolution and host associations of Anoplura. In Coevolution of parasitic arthropods and mammals. Edited by K.C. Kim. John Wiley & Sons, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Pp. 601–682.Google Scholar
Kim, K.C. and Ludwig, H.W. 1982. Parallel evolution, cladistics, and classification of parasitic Psocodea. Annals of the Entomological Society of America, 75: 537–548.Google Scholar
Kim, K.C., Pratt, H.D., and Strojanovich, C.J. 1986. The sucking lice of North America: an illustrated manual for identification. The Pennsylvania State University Press, University Park, Pennsylvania, United States of America.Google Scholar
Krasnov, B.R., Borders, F., Khokhlova, I.S., and Morand, S. 2012. Gender-biased parasitism in small mammals: patterns, mechanisms, consequences. Mammalia, 76: 1–13.Google Scholar
Krasnov, B.R., Morand, S., Hawlena, H., Khokhlova, I.S., and Shenbrot, G.I. 2005. Sex-biased parasitism, seasonality and sexual size dimorphism in desert rodents. Oecologia, 14: 209–217.Google Scholar
Lindsay, L.R. 1989. Patterns of seasonal activity and host-parasite relationships for fleas associated with Richardson's ground squirrels, Spermophilus richardsonii, in southern Manitoba, Canada. M.Sc. thesis. Department of Entomology, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Available from http://hdl.handle.net/1993/7198 [accessed 10 June 2015].Google Scholar
Lourenco, S. and Palmeirim, J.M. 2008. Which factors regulate the reproduction of ectoparasites of temperate-zone cave-dwelling bats? Parasitology Research, 104: 127–134.Google Scholar
Marshall, A.G. 1981. The sex ratio in ectoparasitic insects. Ecological Entomology, 6: 155–174.Google Scholar
Michener, G.R. 1984. Age, sex, and species difference in the annual cycles of ground-dwelling sciurids: implications for sociality. In The biology of ground-dwelling squirrels. Edited by J.O. Murie and G.R. Michener. University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln, Nebraska, United States of America. Pp. 79–108.Google Scholar
Michener, G.R. and Koeppl, J.W. 1985. Spermophilus richardsonii . Mammalian Species, 243: 1–8.Google Scholar
Michener, G.R. and Sheppard, D.H. 1972. Social behavior between adult female Richardson’s ground squirrels (Spermophilus richardsonii) and their own and alien young. Canadian Journal of Zoology, 50: 1343–1349.Google Scholar
Pence, D.B., Windberg, L.A., Pence, B.C., and Sprowls, R. 1983. The epizootiology and pathology of sarcoptic mange in coyotes, Canis latrans, from south Texas. Journal of Parasitology, 69: 1110–1115.Google Scholar
Poulin, R. 1993. Measuring parasite aggregation: defending the index of discrepancy. International Journal of Parasitology, 26: 227–229.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Richards, W.R. 1964. A short method for making balsam mounts of aphids and scale insects. The Canadian Entomologist, 96: 963–966.Google Scholar
Roberts, M.L., Buchanan, K.L., Hasselquist, D., and Evans, M.R. 2007. Effects of testosterone and corticosterone on immunocopetence in the zebra finch. Hormones and Behavior, 51: 126–134.Google Scholar
Rózsa, L., Reiczigel, J., and Majoros, G. 2000. Quantifying parasites in samples of hosts. Journal of Parasitology, 86: 228–232.Google Scholar
Waterman, J.M., Macklin, G.F., and Enright, C. 2014. Sex-biased parasitism in Richardson’s ground squirrels (Urocitellus richardsonii) depends on the parasite examined. Canadian Journal of Zoology, 92: 73–79.Google Scholar
Weil, Z.M., Martin, L.B., and Nelson, R.J. 2006. Interactions among immune, endocrine, behavioural response to infection. In Micromammals and macroparasites. Edited by S. Morand, B.R. Krasnov, and R. Poulin. Springer Science, Tokyo, Japan. Pp. 443–473.Google Scholar