Ornithonyssus bacoti ( Hirst, 1913 )

Mašán, Peter, Fenďa, Peter, Krištofík, Ján & Halliday, Bruce, 2014, A review of the ectoparasitic mites (Acari: Dermanyssoidea) associated with birds and their nests in Slovakia, with notes on identification of some species, Zootaxa 3893 (1), pp. 77-100 : 84-85

Ornithonyssus bacoti ( Hirst, 1913)

Leiognathus bacoti Hirst, 1913: 122 .

Haemogamasus sanguineus Ewing & Stover, 1915: 109 . Synonymy by Strandtmann & Wharton (1958).

Liponyssus tenuiscutatus Ewing, 1923: 22 . Synonymy by Strandtmann & Wharton (1958).

Liponyssus nagayoi Yamada, 1931: 258 . Synonymy by Strandtmann & Wharton (1958).

Liponyssus hirsti Fonseca, 1935: 94 . Synonymy by Micherdziński (1980).

Liponyssus brasiliensis Fonseca, 1939: 147 . Synonymy by Micherdziński (1980).

Liponyssus lutzi Fonseca, 1942: 104 . Synonymy by Micherdziński (1980).

Liponyssus monteiroi Fonseca, 1942: 107 . Synonymy by Micherdziński (1980).

Liponyssus vitzthumi Fonseca, 1942: 110 . Synonymy by Micherdziński (1980).

Liponyssus meprai Manso Soto & Pletneff, 1951: 15 . Synonymy by Micherdziński (1980).

Bdellonyssus bacoti .— Zemskaya, 1955: 350.

Ornithonyssus bacoti .— Evans & Till, 1966: 321; Wilson, 1967: 135; Micherdziński, 1980: 41.

Taxonomic remarks. Our specimens from Slovakia are generally in good agreement with those described by Zemskaya (1955), Evans & Till (1966), Wilson (1967) and Micherdziński (1980), except for the length of the peritremes. The anterior sections of the peritremes in our specimens are slightly shorter than in the specimens previously described—they reach to the mid level of coxae II, while the peritremes in this species are usually described as reaching at least to the posterior margin of the coxae I.

Occurrence and habitat. The European distribution of this species was originally centered mainly around ports and associated primarily with rats of the genus Rattus Fischer ( Beran et al. 1956; Evans & Till 1966). There are only a few reports of this mite in Slovakia, mostly from associations with the house mouse, Mus musculus . The finding of some specimens in an aviary with the Australian zebra finch, Taeniopygia castanotis , is presumed to be an accidental but remarkable occurrence.

Host distribution. Bird nests: Taeniopygia castanotis ( Cyprich et al. 2000) . Mammals: Mus musculus ( Mrciak 1963, Ambros & Stanko 1989, Stanko 1995, Fenďa & Mašán 2003, new data).

New data. Východoslovenská Rovina Lowland: 5 ♀♀, 30 October 1994, Markovce Village, Mus musculus .