Trapping oestrid parasites of reindeer: the relative age, fat body content and gonotrophic conditions of Cephenemyia trompe and Hypoderma tarandi females caught in baited traps.

Abstract

Dissection of flies caught in northern Norway revealed that only mated, gravid females of H.tarandi (L.) and larviparous C.trompe (Modeer) were caught in host-mimicking CO2-baited traps. Trapped females had the same gonotrophic and fat body (FB) conditions as females caught on and around reindeer. Most trapped females of both species were of middle to old age, having only one-half to no FB reserves left and only a few to moderate numbers of eggs or larvae remaining. Most young females trapped also had previously oviposited or larviposited at least once, and some newly eclosed, mated females were present throughout the fly season. Based on the known location of reindeer herds, it was evident that trapped flies that had recently oviposited or larviposited had dispersed into the trapping area from 25-100 km away. Declining FB reserves sustained wild-caught C.trompe females (and in utero larvae) in the laboratory for 14 days and H.tarandi females for 18 days. Reserve FB also was depleted during long flights. Females of both species that flew for the longest times (5.1-11.7 h) on a laboratory flight mill had low FB reserves, but nearly maximum numbers of eggs or larvae. Conversely, most females that flew for less than 5 h on the light mill had little or no FB remaining, and few eggs or larvae. The large FB reserves accumulated as larvae feed in the vertebrate host enable the non-feeding adults to survive and infect their hosts even after prolonged periods of flight-inhibiting climatic conditions.