Diyes G C P, Karunaratne W A I P, Tomberlin J K, Rajakaruna R S
Faculty of Science, Department of Zoology, University of Peradeniya, Peradeniya, 20400, Sri Lanka.
Department of Entomology, Texas A & M University, College Station, 77840, Texas, USA.
Trop Biomed. 2015 Dec 1;32(4):791-795.
Megaselia scalaris (Loew) is a cosmopolitan polyphagous small fly with the ability of exploiting variety of ecological niches. Different life history stages act as detritivore, parasite, and parasitoid of wider spectrum of plant and animal matter under natural and laboratory conditions. Here, for the first time we present the opportunistic parasitism of M. scalaris on Otobius megnini, which act as a vector of Q fever and is capable of causing paralysis, toxic conditions, otoacariasis and otitis in humans and other animals. Tick samples from the ear canals of 14 thoroughbred horses were brought to the laboratory and several days later, larvae of M. scalaris were found feeding on immature stages of O. megnini. When the development was completed pupae were found attached to adult ticks and all nymphs were found dead. This context reveals the capability of M. scalaris surviving on O. megnini and the risk of their invading ear canals of horses.
黑腹果蝇（Megaselia scalaris (Loew)）是一种世界性分布的多食性小型蝇类，能够利用多种生态位。在自然和实验室条件下，其不同的生活史阶段可作为腐食者、寄生虫以及更广泛的动植物物质的寄生蜂。在此，我们首次展示了黑腹果蝇对墨西哥钝缘蜱（Otobius megnini）的机会性寄生现象，墨西哥钝缘蜱是Q热的传播媒介，能够在人类和其他动物中引起麻痹、中毒、耳螨病和中耳炎。从14匹纯种马的耳道采集蜱样本并带回实验室，几天后，发现黑腹果蝇幼虫以墨西哥钝缘蜱的未成熟阶段为食。发育完成后，发现蛹附着在成年蜱上，并且所有若虫均已死亡。这一情况揭示了黑腹果蝇在墨西哥钝缘蜱上生存的能力以及它们侵入马耳道的风险。
