Abstract
Peru has a great diversity of birds, having more than 1870 species in its territory. However, studies on chewing lice (Phthiraptera) in birds from Peru are still limited. The objective of this study is to contribute to the knowledge of the diversity of lice in birds of Peru. The material used comes from the Zoological Collection of the Natural History Museum of the Universidad Nacional Federico Villarreal, Lima, Peru. Ten species of lice distributed in three families were identified: three species of the Menoponidae family, five species of Philopteridae and two species of Ricinidae collected from seven species of birds. This work records for the first time Hohorstiella lata Piaget, 1880, Quadraceps eugrammicus (Burmeister, 1838), Trochiloecetes illumani Carriker, 1960 and Ricinus frenatus Burmeister, 1838 in Peru; likewise, four new hosts of the order Passeriformes are registered for Mayriphilopterus ernsti Mey, 2004, Threnetes leucurus (Linnaeus, 1766) as a new host for T. illumani and two new hosts for R. frenatus; Larus belcheri Vigors, 1829 is also reported as a new host for Quadraceps eugrammicus (Burmeister, 1838) and Austromenopon transversum Denny, 1842.
Highlights
Research on ectoparasites in birds involving lice, mites, fleas, ticks, and flies has been intensifying in recent years (McAllister et al, 2018; Hasan, 2019)
Lice species were collected from seven bird species: belcher’s gull Larus belcheri Vigors, 1829, pale-tailed barbthroat Threnetes leucurus (Linnaeus, 1766), rufous-rumped foliage-gleaner Philydor erythrocercum (Pelzeln, 1859), grey-breasted flycatcher Lathrotriccus griseipectus (Lawrence, 1869), Common scale-backed antbird Willisornis poecilinotus (Cabanis, 1847), wedge-billed woodcreeper Glyphorynchus spirurus (Vieillot, 1819) and rock dove Columba livia (Gmelin, 1789)
Comment: Austromenopon transversum was first reported in Peru parasitizing Larus modestus Tschudi, 1843 (Dale, 1970) and in Chile it is reported in hosts of the family Laridae (González-Acuña et al, 2006), but not including L. belcheri
Summary
Research on ectoparasites in birds involving lice, mites, fleas, ticks, and flies has been intensifying in recent years (McAllister et al, 2018; Hasan, 2019). Chewing lice (Amblycera and Ischnocera) belonging to the order Phthiraptera are obligate and specific ectoparasites of birds and mammals Lice can be highly specific to their hosts, as several species have been identified in a single host; while some species of lice have been recorded in other closely related birds (Tavera et al, 2019). It is mentioned that lice of the genera Austromenopon Bedford 1939, Quadraceps Clay and Meinertzhagen, 1939, Saemundssonia Timmermann, 1936 and Ciconiphilus Bedford, 1939, are closely associated with birds of the order Charadriiformes (Figueiredo et al, 2010; Tavera et al, 2019)
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