EXPERIMENTS ON THE OLFACTORY RESPONSES AND HOST-SPECIFICITY OF THE ORIENTAL RAT FLEA (XENOPSYLLA CHEOPIS), (SIPHONAPTERA: PULICIDAE).

Abstract

Factors governing the response of the Oriental rat flea, X. cheopis, to the white rat and to three murids were studied in an olfactometer.Starved females aged 5–10 days were attracted to white rats, whereas starved younger females were repelled or indifferent. Starved males, 1–10 days old, were either indifferent or were repelled.No clear-cut attraction of 7- and 8-day-old starved females towards the murids Meriones tristrami, Acomys dimidiatus and Microtus guentheri was observed.Starved females increased their weight during the first 8 days of life by 12·0%, while starved males lost 2·2%. Females kept in a vessel with a white rat showed a 115·2% weight gain, while males under the same conditions gained only 18·8% (Table 5).The authors wish to thank Dr F. G. A. M. Smit, of the British Museum (Natural History), Tring, Hertfordshire (England), for his valuable help in the preparation of the manuscript for this paper.