Abstract
The morphology and formation of stylostomes (feeding tubes) in hosts’ body during the parasitic phase of Allothrombium fuliginosum (Hermann) larvae were studied for the first time with light microscopy (LM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The stylostomes were observed in three aphids species—Acyrthosiphon pisum (Harris), Elatobium abietinum (Walker), and Macrosiphum rosae (L.)—parasitized by mites under laboratory conditions. They consisted of 2–6 main branches, preliminarily unbranched, then producing secondary and sometimes also tertiary branches as finally formed structures. Their walls were uniformly electron-dense, without any longitudinal and transverse stratifications and showed rather irregular outlines. Distally, the stylostome branches revealed transparent pores and cavities in their walls, connecting the stylostome canal with surrounding haemocoelic space. The total length of stylostomes at the end of the parasitic phase was on average 16× greater than that recorded in the youngest stylostomes. No differences in the overall shape of feeding tubes between host species were stated. The stylostomes formed in different host species did not differ significantly, except their total length, which attained the highest value in tissues of Ac. pisum.
Highlights
Parasitism by larvae of some Parasitengona mites is associated with the formation of stylostomes in the hosts’ tissues
The present study aims to provide a detailed description of stylostomes produced by A. fuliginosum larvae, using light microscopy (LM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) methods
scanning electron microscopy (SEM) of the mouth apparatus of unfed larvae reveals the possibility of formation of the temporary sucker (Fig. 1a)
Summary
Parasitism by larvae of some Parasitengona mites is associated with the formation of stylostomes (feeding tubes) in the hosts’ tissues. Larvae feed on the host’s haemolymph and liquefied host material (Peterson et al 1992; Wohltmann 2000; Shatrov 2009; Shatrov et al 2014). Stylostomes have been reported for several Hydrachnidia, Trombiculidae, and Trombidiidae (Trombidium, Allothrombium) mites (Wohltmann 2000). Feeding tubes of these taxa differ significantly. Trombiculid larvae, being parasites of vertebrates, produce relatively wide, always unbranched, and open-ended stylostomes (Voigt 1970; Wohltmann 2000; Shatrov 2009; Shatrov et al 2014). Stylostomes of Trombidiidae have been considered multibranched and blind-ended (Wohltmann 2000)
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