The effects of the cestodeVampirolepis stramineaon reproduction in the house mouse

Abstract

The possibility that the bile duct tapeworm, Vampirolepis straminea, affects reproductionin house mice was tested by comparing breeding in infected and uninfected control mice maintained under standardlaboratory conditions. V. straminea infection resulted in a significant delay between first and second litters but there was no significant difference between the number of litters or the total numberof offspring producedby infected andcontrolmice.The resultssuggestthatV.straminea is probably not suitableas a biologicalcontrol agent for house mice.

Advances in New Zealand mammalogy 1990–2000: House mouse

“…Females bom at the end of summer delay their maturation until the next breeding season (Miller & Miller 1995). Murphy (1989Murphy ( , 1991 reported depressed breeding on Allports Island, Queen Charlotte Sound, in 1987, where mice were severely infected with the bile duct tapeworm Vampirolepis straminea. Further studies under laboratory conditions showed that, although infection with the tapeworm led to a significant delay between first and second litters, it was not correlated with any reduction in number of litters or with the total number of offspring produced per female.…”