The type specimens of chewing lice (Insecta, Mallophaga) deposited in the entomological collection of Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil

First finding of the tick Amblyomma tigrinum parasitizing a Molina’s hog-nosed skunk, Conepatus chinga (Molina 1782), in South America

“…The literature referred to ectoparasites hosted by Molina's hog-nosed skunk is mostly restricted to records of Ornithodoros brasiliensis Aragao, 1923 (Labruna et al 2005) and Neotrichodectes spp. (Tricodectidae) (Almeida et al 2003), being our study the first record of the occurrence of A. tigrinum in this mephitid in Chile and South America. Although adult stages of A. tigrinum typically parasite wild and domestic canids (Guglielmone et al 2021), other carnivores belonging to the families Felidae (i.e., Leopardus colocolo Molina, 1782 (Martins et al 2011), Puma concolor Linnaeus, 1771 and Pathera onca Linnaeus, 1758 (Durden et al 2006)) and Procyonidae (i.e., Nasua nasua Linnaeus, 1766 (Magalhães-Matos et al 2017)) can also harbor this tick species; including domestic dogs (Tomassone et al 2010;Guglielmone et al 2000) and cats (Guglielmone et al 2000), and other non-carnivore species as suids, cervids and bovines (Nava et al 2017;González-Acuña et al 2006).…”

“…Currently, the scientific literature has been mostly focused in ecological (Kasper et al 2012;Castillo et al 2011;Reppucci et al 2009), dietary (Montalvo et al 2008;Donadio et al 2004) and taxonomic (Schiaffini et al 2013) aspects of Molina's hog-nosed skunk. While the role of this mammal as endoparasite host has been previously reported (Gómez-Puerta et al 2012;Gómez-Puerta et al 2009;Pietrokovsky et al 1991), there is still scarce evidence on ectoparasite species parasitizing skunks along its native range (Labruna et al 2005;Almeida et al 2003).…”

Natural history of the marsupialThylamys macrurus(Mammalia, Didelphidae) in fragments of savannah in southwestern Brazil

“…Therefore, T. macrurus is a newly recorded host for A. miniatus. Similarly, T. macrurus is a newly recorded host for G. lenti lenti, since these lice have only been reported in rodents (Werneck 1948;Cardozo-de-Almeida et al 2003). Chiggers (Trombiculinae I) are parasites of marsupials (Wharton and Fuller 1952;Brennan and Goff 1977).…”

The digestive system of human lice: current advances and potential applications

“…Mallophaga (Phthiraptera) are well‐adapted to live permanently on the host, as demonstrated by its flatted and small body size, clawed tarsi and a haired body. Some forms nibble the skin and ingest the exuding blood (Buxton, 1947; Cardoso‐de‐Almeida et al , 2003). Achievement of the final step to an exclusively blood‐feeding behaviour brought the advantage of a more energy‐rich and easily digestible food source (Lehane, 2005).…”