Sturnidoecus ruficeps (Nitzsch, 1866)

Ilieva, Mihaela, 2009, Checklist of the chewing lice (Insecta: Phthiraptera) from wild birds in Bulgaria, Zootaxa 2138 (1), pp. 1-66 : 46

Sturnidoecus ruficeps (Nitzsch [In Giebel], 1866)

Reports: [1] Balát (1958); [2] Touleshkov (1961a); [3] Touleshkov (1962); [4] Touleshkov (1964a); [5] Touleshkov (1974); [6] Ilieva (2005).

Synonym: Penenirmus ruficeps (Scopoli) [1].

Hosts: Fringilla montifringilla L. * [2]; Passer domesticus (L.) * [5]; P. montanus (L.) [1, 3, 4, 5, 6].

Distribution in Bulgaria: Petrich [1]; Grudovo (Burgas Region) [2]; Petrich, Gotse Delchev [3]; Pazardzhik, Plovdiv, Stara Zagora, Ognyanovo (Pazardzhik Region), Harmanli, Biser (Haskovo Region) [4]; Varshets, Godech, Botevgrad, Karlovo, Teteven, Gabrovo, Elena, Kotel, Buchin Prohod, Shuma (Sofia Region) [5]; Nova Cherna (Silistra Region) [6].

Remarks: The type host of Sturnidoecus ruficeps (Nitzsch [In Giebel], 1866) is Passer montanus (L.). The lice from this species found on Fringilla montifringilla L. could not be treated as stragglers from Passer spp. as during the given period birds from this genus were not collected. As parasite on Passer domesticus (L.), Sturnidoecus refractariolus (Złotorzycka, 1964) is known ( Price et al. 2003). According to Macháček (1977), S. refractariolus is synonym of S. ruficeps . The examined material from P. domesticus collected by Touleshkov is here confirmed as S. ruficeps .