HIGH HOST-SPECIFICITY OF CRATAERINA-MELBAE (DIPTERA, HIPPOBOSCIDAE) IN A MIXED COLONY OF BIRDS

Authors
TELLA JL GAJON A GORTAZAR C OSACAR JJ
Citation
Jl. Tella et al., HIGH HOST-SPECIFICITY OF CRATAERINA-MELBAE (DIPTERA, HIPPOBOSCIDAE) IN A MIXED COLONY OF BIRDS, The Journal of parasitology, 84(1), 1998, pp. 198-200
Citations number
25
Categorie Soggetti
Parasitiology
Journal title
The Journal of parasitology → ACNP
ISSN journal
00223395
Volume
84
Issue
1
Year of publication
1998
Pages
198 - 200
Database
ISI
SICI code
0022-3395(1998)84:1<198:HHOC(H>2.0.ZU;2-5
Abstract
We looked for louse flies (Diptera, Hippoboscidae) in a mixed colony o f 9 species of birds from 1991 to 1997. Alpine swifts (Apus melba) exh ibited an unusually high prevalence (85.9%) by Crataerina melbae (Rond ani, 1879). No birds from the other 8 breeding bird species were paras itized by this louse fly. We suggest that the number of potential swif tlike hosts as well as the size of hosts may account for the different ial prevalence of the louse flies within the colony.