New Geographical Records of Bat Flies (Diptera: Streblidae) Associated With Phyllostomid Bats (Chiroptera: Phyllostomidae) in the West Highlands of Mexico

J Med Entomol. 2019 Jan 8;56(1):18-28. doi: 10.1093/jme/tjy166.

Abstract

Streblidae are ectoparasites exclusive to bats and feed only on their blood. Studies on ectoparasite fauna have increased our ecological knowledge of the parasitic relationship between streblids and their bat hosts. We evaluate assemblages of phyllostomid bats and their ectoparasitic flies in three scenarios with different types of anthropogenic use: pine-oak forest, avocado orchards, and an urban park during an annual cycle in the highlands of Michoacan, Mexico. We recorded a total of 325 bats belonging to nine species in three subfamilies: Glossophaginae, Desmodontinae, and Stenodermatinae, and obtained 225 bat flies belonging to seven species. The nectivorous bat Anoura geoffroyi Gray, 1838, had the highest prevalence of infestation and the hematophagous bat Desmodus rotundus (É. Geoffroy, 1810) was the host with the highest mean parasite abundance and mean intensity. Aspidoptera delatorrei Wenzel, 1966, Megistopoda proxima (Séguy, 1926), Paratrichobius longicrus (Miranda Ribeiro, 1907), Trichobius brennani Wenzel, 1966, and T. parasiticus Gervais, 1844, are new records for the state of Michoacan reported in this study.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Chiroptera / parasitology*
  • Diptera / anatomy & histology
  • Diptera / classification*
  • Diptera / physiology
  • Female
  • Host-Parasite Interactions*
  • Male
  • Mexico