Animals as Habitats

Abstract

To most non-biologists, a 'mite' is an almost invisible creature that lives in the carpet and gives you asthma or that burrows in your skin to produce socially unacceptable scabies. Cat owners may curse the ear mites that infest their pets and those who know that ticks are mites may mention Lyme Disease. Such medically important associations between mites and mammals are discussed in most parasitology texts, and mites associated with human diseases are discussed in our Chap. 10 ; therefore, in this chapter we cover ticks and other human-and livestock-associated mites superfi cially, concentrating instead on lesser known relationships between mites and the animals they use for room and board. These associations are not always negative; in fact, many seemingly parasitic mites have no impact on their hosts or may even be benefi cial (see section " Mutualism ", below).One of the recurring themes of this book is that mites live in the most astonishing places. This is particularly apparent among animal-associated acarines. A complete list of associations between mites and other animals would occupy an entire book but to whet the reader's appetite we have provided Table 9.1 , where we list the associations that acarologists use to shock jaded students or to start conversations at dull parties. After perusing this list many will be compelled to exclaim, 'What's a mite doing there?' or 'How did a mite get there?'. The fi rst question is a proximate one -what is the ecology of the symbiotic mite? -and the second an ultimate one -what evolutionary history and selective pressures have resulted in this association? In the fi rst section of this chapter we discuss the ecological terminology dealing with symbiosis and then outline some major hypotheses about how different symbioses may evolve. The next two sections discuss the life histories and behaviour of mites associated with invertebrates and vertebrates respectively and the fourth section surveys the diverse effects that parasitic mites have on their hosts. Finally, the last section addresses the topic of coevolution between hosts and symbionts from an acarine point of view.

Feather mites play a role in cleaning host feathers: New insights fromDNAmetabarcoding and microscopy

“…Whether the quantities of bacteria and fungi eaten by feather mites are enough to increase host fitness requires further study. Altogether, our results support previous evidence on the commensalistic–mutualistic role of vane‐dwelling feather mites (Blanco et al., , ; Galván et al., ; Proctor, ; Walter & Proctor, ,b,c). Thus, vane‐dwelling feather mites probably should no longer be considered to be parasites of birds (e.g., Harper, ) but rather commensalists–mutualists.…”

“…If they feed on bird tissues, they are more likely to be classified as parasites (Harper, ; Poulin, ; Thompson, Hillgarth, Leu, & McClure, ), while if they do not, feather mites would more likely be commensals or even mutualists (Blanco, Tella, & Potti, ; Blanco, Tella, Potti, & Baz, ; Galván et al., ). Previous evidence has suggested that feather mites could feed mainly on the uropygial gland oil of birds (Dubinin, ; Proctor, ; Walter & Proctor, ). However, this oil is a nitrogen‐deficient source (Jacob & Ziswiler ; Proctor, ), and previous evidence has shown that feather mites complement their diet with fungi, pollen and algal particles (Blanco et al., ; Dubinin, ; Proctor, ; Walter & Proctor, ).…”

“…Previous evidence has suggested that feather mites could feed mainly on the uropygial gland oil of birds (Dubinin, 1951;Proctor, 2003;Walter & Proctor, 2013c). However, this oil is a nitrogen-deficient source (Jacob & Ziswiler 1982;Proctor, 2003), and previous evidence has shown that feather mites complement their diet with fungi, pollen and algal particles (Blanco et al, 2001;Dubinin, 1951;Proctor, 2003;Walter & Proctor, 2013c). Examining thousands of slidemounted feather mites from 26 mite species, Dubinin (1951) found that almost all mite species had fungal spores in their guts, most from Cladosporium, Alternaria and rust fungi.…”

Host specificity, infrequent major host switching and the diversification of highly host‐specific symbionts: The case of vane‐dwelling feather mites

“…Hence, they are mainly transmitted vertically from parents to offspring (Doña, Potti et al, ; Jovani, Tella, Sol, & Ventura, ; Proctor, ). Feather mite species are often highly host specific and restricted to a single bird species, usually occurring in specific wing areas and even in particular sections within feathers (Choe & Kim, ; Fernández‐González, Pérez‐Rodríguez, de la Hera, Proctor, & Pérez‐Tris, ; Jovani & Serrano, ; Mironov, ; Proctor, ; Pérez & Atyeo, ; Stefan et al, ; Walter & Proctor, ).…”

Demodectic mange in threatened southern sea otters (Enhydralutrisnereis)

“…and DNA sequencing confirmed that the sea otter mite is in the Demodex genus. As Demodex mites tend to be monoxenous, 34 this parasite is likely unique to sea otters. The length of sea otter mites (164 µm) is comparable to Demodex sp.…”