Effect of Bot Fly Parasitism on Vertical Habitat use byPeromyscus leucopus

Abstract

Peromyscus leucopus (White-footed Mouse) use the 3-dimensional space of their habitat. We studied whether Cuterebra fontinella (Bot Fly) larvae affected rate of capture in traps set above ground compared to traps set on the ground in deciduous forests in Ohio and Georgia. Rates of infestation were nearly three-fold greater in Ohio than in Georgia. Infested animals were captured equally in traps on the ground and in traps 1.5 m above ground in Ohio, but were captured less frequently in traps on the ground than in traps 1.5 m above ground in Georgia. Sex of animals did not affect these results. Infested animals were not captured in traps 4.5 m above the ground in Georgia, suggesting a possible limit to use of vertical habitat space by infested mice.