Sarcopromusca pruna (Diptera: Muscidae) as an egg transport host of Dermatobia hominis (Diptera: Cuterebridae) in the cacau region of Bahia, Brazil

Abstract

Sarcopromusca pruna appears to be the predominant transport host for Dermatobia hominis eggs among cattle herds in central eastern Bahia, Brazil. In the study area, two seasonal peaks of S. Pruna abundance coincide with those of Dermatobia, from mid July through late September and from mid November until early January, two periods of moderate monthly rainfall between anual extremes. Among more than 26,000 flies examined during the study, 75 (all female S. pruna) bore Dermatobia eggs. Certain aspects of Dermatobia behavior and ovoposition habits in the field are also discussed

Occurrence of Sarcopromusca pruna (Diptera) in Southern Brazil as a vector of Dermatobia hominis (Diptera) eggs

“…It can happen on each or both sides simultaneously in the same specimen, with a direct relationship between the size of the abdomen and the number of the eggs (Silva et al, 1989). …”

“…The larvae develop in bovine and equine excrement (Pedroso-de-Paiva, 1996). For this reason, in Latin America, this fly is suspected of being an important phoretic vector of D. hominis eggs (Neel et al, 1955;Koone and Banegas, 1959;Lombardero and Fontana, 1968;Silva et al, 1989), with geographic distribution similar to the bot-fly (Guimarães and Papavero, 1999;Nihei, 2005). In Bahia, S. pruna was the main vector of D. hominis eggs (Silva et al, 1989), and in Mato Grosso do Sul it played an important role in botfly epidemiology (Gomes et al, 1998).…”