Rodent ectoparasites from two locations in northwestern Florida

From Feb.-Apr. 1999, 19 species of ectoparasitic arthropods (2 sucking lice , 4 fleas, 4 ticks, 2 mesostigmatid mites, 5 chiggers, 2 fur mites) were re covered from 106 rodents belonging to 5 species (cotton mouse, Peromyscus g ossypinus, n=64; cotton rat, Sigmodon hispidus, n=23; eastern woodrat, Neot oma floridana, n=9: golden mouse, Ochrotomys nuttalli, n=9; eastern gray sq uirrel, Sciurus carolinensis, n=1) at Tall Timbers Research Station, Leon C ounty, Florida. During the same period, 13 species of ectoparasites (2 suck ing lice, 1 flea, 3 ticks, 3 mesostigmatid mites, 2 chiggers, 2 fur mites) were recovered from 57 rodents belonging to 3 species (S. hispidus, n=40; b lack rat, Rattus rattus, n=16; S. carolinensis, n=1) from Panama City, Bay County, Florida. Noteworthy ectoparasite records include Ixodes minor from both sites, which extends the known geographical range of this tick, and St enoponia americana from Tall Timbers that represents the second documented Florida record of this flea. Potential tick vectors (Dermacentor variabilis and Ixodes scapularis) of zoonotic pathogens (Rickettsia rickettsii and Bo rrelia burgdorferi) were collected at both sites. On S. hispidus, fleas wer e more prevalent at Tall Timbers but sucking lice, chiggers, ticks, mesosti gmatid and listrophorid mites all were more prevalent at the Panama City si te. Arthropods recovered from arboreal nests (n=3) of O, nuttalli at Tall T imbers included 3 species of ectoparasites (1 tick, 2 laelapid mites).