Life history of Macrocheles muscaedomesticae (Parasitiformes: Macrochelidae): new insights on life history and evidence of facultative parasitism on Drosophila

Durkin, Emily S.; Proctor, H. C.; Luong, Lien T.

doi:10.1007/s10493-019-00431-y

Cited by 11 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 19 publications

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“…Two female mites belonging to Macrocheles 2017muscaedomesticae were recovered from the body. M. muscaedomesticae is a cosmopolitan species commonly found in domestic, urban, and semirural habitats (Kamaruzaman et al 2018;Durkin et al 2019). This species of mite specializes in rotting organic matter, such as dung and compost (Krantz and Walter 2009).…”

Section: Mite Affiliations With Mummies In Forensic Contextsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mummy Taphonomy and Arthropod Associates of Decay

Smith¹,

Gipson²,

Piombino‐Mascali³

et al. 2020

The Handbook of Mummy Studies

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Arthropods have long been an important component of the study of mummified human remains due to their ability to resist natural taphonomic and decompositional processes. However, despite the large amount of research that has been produced regarding arthropod associates of human decomposition, one important taxon of arthropod has largely remained overlooked by the literature, that of the acari, or mites. The purpose of this chapter is to provide a brief overview of published cases in which mites have been found in association with mummified human remains in forensic and archaeological contexts. This chapter will begin with a discussion of contemporary forensic cases and historical archaeological cases that feature mites recovered from mummies, as well as a review of other arthropod associates of decay that have been located alongside the mites recovered from these contexts. The chapter will conclude with a section discussing current research being conducted in the field of archaeoacarology with

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Section: Mite Affiliations With Mummies In Forensic Contextsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mummy Taphonomy and Arthropod Associates of Decay

Smith¹,

Gipson²,

Piombino‐Mascali³

et al. 2020

The Handbook of Mummy Studies

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“…These mite-insect associations can be phoretic, where a mite is entirely passive while being attached to its host [3][4][5]. Not infrequently, however, the mite feeds on insects during transportation, and, as an ectoparasite, it can exert a negative impact on their fitness [6][7][8][9]. Moreover, when foraging in the habitat of the insect host, mesostigmatic predators can also prey on its immature stages [1,10].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Both field and laboratory observations have shown that drosophilids can also be carriers for mesostigmatic predatory mites [8,9,[13][14][15][16][17]. With reference to this, the relationships of Macrocheles subbadius (Berlese) and M. muscadomesticae (Scopoli) (Macrochelidae) as well as Blattisocius (Paragarmania) mali (Oudemans) (Blattisociidae) have been studied in detail.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…With reference to this, the relationships of Macrocheles subbadius (Berlese) and M. muscadomesticae (Scopoli) (Macrochelidae) as well as Blattisocius (Paragarmania) mali (Oudemans) (Blattisociidae) have been studied in detail. Both macrochelids turned out to be ectoparasitic in relation to the adult fruit fly hosts; they fed on them during transportation, deleteriously affecting their body condition and flight ability [6,8,18,19]. Moreover, the ectoparasitism of M. subbadius also adversely influenced Diversity 2023, 15, 652 2 of 14 fruit fly reproduction and survival [6,20].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Feeding Behaviour of the Mite Blattisocius mali on Eggs of the Fruit Flies Drosophila melanogaster and D. hydei

et al. 2023

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Many predatory mites use insects for dispersal; however, their possible negative effects on insect hosts during transportation and on insect offspring while preying in the hosts’ habitats are still poorly understood. A recent study has revealed that the predatory mite Blattisocius mali can not only spread by means of drosophilid fruit flies but also feed on their bodies during dispersal. The aim of this study was to examine the capability of B. mali to prey upon the eggs of their fruit fly hosts and determine the effect of the egg’s age on the voracity of this predator. Drosophila melanogaster oviposited on agar media for 1 h and D. hydei for 8 or 16 h. During 10-h experiments with fifteen fly eggs per cage, a single female predator totally consumed on average 3.62 ± 0.673 “1-h” D. melanogaster eggs and 3.00 ± 0.612 “8-h” eggs of D. hydei, while it partially consumed 2.75 ± 0.586 and 3.00 ± 0.612 eggs of each fly species. In the experiments involving D. hydei, the predator totally destroyed a similar number of “8-h” and “16-h” eggs, but it partially consumed significantly more younger eggs than older eggs. Ethological observations showed that mites returned to some partially fed eggs, usually from the side where the first puncture was made, and only then did they consume them whole.

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“…While some species are phoretic, such as e.g., Poecilochirus carabi G. Canestrini and R. Canestrini on the burying beetle Nicrophorus vespilloides Herbst [ 8 ] or Parasitellus fucorum (De Geer) on bumblebees Bombus sp. [ 9 ], others are ectoparasites that feed on insects during transport, such as Macrocheles muscaedomesticae (Scopoli) and M. subbadius (Berlese) [ 10 , 11 ]. Moreover, both phoronts and ectoparasites can also feed on eggs laid by the hosts and also in further developmental stages [ 8 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ectoparasitism of the Flightless Drosophila melanogaster and D. hydei by the Mite Blattisocius mali (Acari: Blattisociidae)

Michalska

Mrowińska

Studnicki

2023

Insects

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Predatory mites dispersing by means of insects are often ectoparasites and may use various tactics to get onto the host, counteract its defenses, and diminish its survival. Blattisocius mali is a promising biological control agent which has been reported as transported by several drosophilid species. Our goal was to determine the type of relationship between this mite and fruit flies. We used flightless females of Drosophila melanogaster and D. hydei, which were commercially raised as live pet food. The predatory females mostly attacked the tarsi of the flies and then preferentially moved to the cervix or close to coxa III, where they eventually drilled their chelicerae and started feeding. Although both fly species used similar defensive tactics, more B. mali females did not attack D. hydei or did so with a delay, and a higher percentage of mites fell off the D. hydei tarsi during the first hour of observation. After 24 h, we noted the increased mortality of flies exposed to the presence of mites. Our study indicates the ectoparasitic relationship of B. mali with drosophilids. However, further research is needed to confirm the transport of this mite on wild D. hydei and D. melanogaster, both in the laboratory and under natural conditions.

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Life history of Macrocheles muscaedomesticae (Parasitiformes: Macrochelidae): new insights on life history and evidence of facultative parasitism on Drosophila

Cited by 11 publications

References 19 publications

Mummy Taphonomy and Arthropod Associates of Decay

Mummy Taphonomy and Arthropod Associates of Decay

Feeding Behaviour of the Mite Blattisocius mali on Eggs of the Fruit Flies Drosophila melanogaster and D. hydei

Ectoparasitism of the Flightless Drosophila melanogaster and D. hydei by the Mite Blattisocius mali (Acari: Blattisociidae)

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