Phthiropsylla agenoris (Rothschild, 1904)

Ezquiaga, María Cecilia & Soibelzon, Esteban, 2021, New records of fleas and ticks in armadillos (Xenarthra: Chlamyphoridae) from the Espinal and Monte ecoregions of La Pampa province, Argentina, Zootaxa 4950 (3), pp. 595-600 : 596-597

Phthiropsylla agenoris (Rothschild, 1904)

( Fig. 2a )

Specimens examined. 32 females on 3 C. villosus and 7 females on 2 Z. pichiy ; 13 males on 3 C. villosus and 1 male on a single Z. pichiy .

Parasitological indices. Total: P=33%; MA=3.6; MI=11. Chaetophractus villosus : P=27%; MA=3; MI=11; Zaedyus pichiy: P=50%; MA=5.5; MI=11. No significant differences were observed in the prevalence, mean abundance or mean intensity of P. agenoris between C. villosus and Z. pichiy (Fisher’s exact test two-sided p -value= 0.580; Bootstrap p -value (two-sided) = 0.6240; Wilcoxon-Mann-Whitney p -value (two-tailed) = 0.7728, Bootstrap p -value (two-sided) = 1.0000 respectively).

Type host and locality. Dasypus sp., Cruz del Eje , Argentina .

Geographic range. Endemic to Argentina (provinces of Buenos Aires, Catamarca, Chubut, Córdoba, La Pampa, La Rioja, Mendoza, Neuquén, Río Negro , Salta, San Juan, San Luis, Santa Cruz, Tucumán) .

Remarks. Phthiropsylla and Malacopsylla are the only genera in Malacopsyllidae . Phthiropsylla Wagner includes a single species, P. agenoris , recognized by the presence of three short, blunt pseudospines on the pronotum, and the complete oblique break of the mesocoxa ( Smit 1987). Phthiropsylla agenoris mainly parasitizes xenarthrans from Argentina; however, it has been recorded on Canidae ( Lycalopex griseus , Cerdocyon thous ), Mephitidae ( Conepatus chinga suffocans ), Leporidae ( Lepus europaeus ) and Caviidae ( Dolichotis patagonum , Galea musteloides , Microcavia australis ) ( Smit 1987; Lareschi et al. 2010, 2016; Ezquiaga & Lareschi 2012). In the province of La Pampa, this species was recorded by Mauri & Navone (1993) on C. villosus and Z. pichiy .

Figures

FIGURE 2. Ectoparasites of armadillos. a) Phthiropsylla agenoris, female. b) Malacopsylla grossiventris, male. c) Hectopsylla broscus, female. d) Amblyomma pseudoconcolor, male.