Lm. Rueda et Rc. Axtell, ARTHROPODS IN LITTER OF POULTRY (BROILER CHICKEN AND TURKEY) HOUSES, Journal of agricultural entomology, 14(1), 1997, pp. 81-91
Samples (110) of litter were collected from 26 commercial broiler chic
ken houses (18 farms) and 30 turkey (brooder and growout) houses (15 f
arms) in North Carolina, and the arthropods within the litter were rec
overed by using Tullgren funnels. Mites extracted from the litter samp
les belonged to two orders (Parasitiformes and Acariformes) and nine f
amilies (Macrochelidae, Urodinychidae, Trematuridae, Parasitidae, Diga
masellidae, Laelapidae, Cheyletidae, Acaridae, Eremulidae). Predatory
macrochelid mites (Macrocheles muscaedomesticae [Scopoli]), M. merdari
a [Berlese], Macrocheles sp.) were collected in 45% and 49% of the lit
ter samples from poultry houses in 1993 and 1994, respectively. Other
predatory mites extracted were Fuscuropoda marginata (Koch) and Cheyle
tus malaccensis Oudemans. In addition, 110 duplicate litter samples we
re held with sentinel eggs of the darkling beetle Alphitobius diaperin
us (Panzer) to detect mites preying on the eggs; the mite Acarophenax
mahunkai Steinkraus & Cross (Acarophenacidae) was recovered from two b
roiler houses and one turkey house. Insects collected from the litter
samples belonged to seven orders and 14 families. Alphitobius diaperin
us was the dominant insect species and was found in all litter samples
. The predatory histerid beetle Carcinops pumilio (Erichson) was found
in 59% of litter samples. The pyralid moth pest Pyralis farinalis L.
occurred in 10% of the litter samples.