Biology Department, Box 6931, Radford University, Radford, Virginia 24142.
Division of Natural Sciences, Northern Virginia Community College, 8333 Little River Turnpike, Annandale, Virginia 22003.
J Parasitol. 2024 Apr 1;110(2):179-185. doi: 10.1645/23-118.
Allegheny woodrats (Neotoma magister) are karst-specializing rodents that are rare or in conservation need in many states within their current range. Parasitism and habitat fragmentation have been suggested as primary reasons for declining populations. The presence, prevalence, and impact of ectoparasites, including fleas, ticks, and bots, is not fully understood rangewide. We collected Allegheny woodrat ectoparasites across 8 states in their range, identifying parasites via morphological and genetic means. Across contributions from 8 states, we discovered 2 woodrat-specific fleas parasitizing Allegheny woodrats: Orchopeas pennsylvanicus (all contributing states, n = 228) and Epitedia cavernicola (Indiana only, n = 9). The former was a new state record in New Jersey and Ohio. Woodrat specialists Ixodes woodi were morphologically identified as the dominant tick species (n = 38), and our contributions to genetic databases may ease confusion in future efforts. Three generalist species of ticks representing 8 individuals were identified as Dermacentor variabilis, Amblyomma americanum, and Ixodes scapularis. Only 2 bot fly species were recognized in Allegheny woodrats: 1 squirrel bot (Cuterebra emasculator) and 10 individuals of Cuterebra sp. not genetically conspecific to any known eastern U.S. rodent bot. The host specificity for fleas is not surprising, given that previous small-scale surveys and ticks primarily appear to be a mix of genus-specific (Ixodes woodi) and generalist species. There remains uncertainty with bots via morphological and genetic analyses. Our survey presents a wide-ranging baseline survey for Allegheny woodrats across their range, emphasizing the diversity (or specificity) of parasite groups for this species. An understanding of Allegheny woodrats and the health impact of ectoparasites is imperative because they face myriad challenges rangewide, especially considering the bot-driven demise of 1 woodrat in our study. Ectoparasites can have a marked impact on already-declining woodrat populations across their range and should not be overlooked in future surveys.
阿勒格尼木鼠（Neotoma magister）是一种专门适应喀斯特地貌的啮齿动物，在其当前分布范围内的许多州，它们数量稀少或处于保护需求之中。寄生虫和栖息地破碎化被认为是种群数量下降的主要原因。寄生虫包括跳蚤、蜱和幼虫等外寄生虫的存在、流行程度和影响在整个范围内尚未得到充分了解。我们在其分布范围内的 8 个州收集了阿勒格尼木鼠的外寄生虫，通过形态学和遗传学方法来识别寄生虫。在来自 8 个州的贡献中，我们发现了两种寄生在阿勒格尼木鼠身上的木鼠特异性跳蚤：宾夕法尼亚奥氏蚤（所有贡献州，n = 228）和洞穴伊壁蝇（仅在印第安纳州，n = 9）。前者在新泽西州和俄亥俄州是一个新的州记录。形态学上鉴定的木鼠特异性蜱种为主要蜱种（n = 38），我们对遗传数据库的贡献可能有助于减轻未来工作中的混淆。鉴定出 8 个个体的 3 种通用蜱种为多形革蜱、美洲钝缘蜱和肩突硬蜱。在阿勒格尼木鼠中仅发现 2 种幼虫蝇：1 种松鼠幼虫蝇（Cuterebra emasculator）和 10 个幼虫蝇种，其在遗传上与任何已知的美国东部啮齿动物幼虫蝇都不同。跳蚤的宿主特异性并不奇怪，因为之前的小规模调查和蜱主要是属特异性（Ixodes woodi）和通用种的混合。通过形态学和遗传学分析，幼虫蝇仍然存在不确定性。我们的调查为阿勒格尼木鼠在其分布范围内提供了广泛的基线调查，强调了该物种寄生虫群体的多样性（或特异性）。了解阿勒格尼木鼠和外寄生虫的健康影响至关重要，因为它们在整个范围内面临着众多挑战，特别是考虑到在我们的研究中，1 只木鼠因幼虫蝇而死亡。外寄生虫会对已经数量下降的木鼠种群产生显著影响，在未来的调查中不应忽视它们。
