Chewing lice of the genus Myrsidea waterston (Phthiraptera: Menoponidae) from the emberizidae and thraupidae (Passeriformes) in Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil

Malófagos do gênero Myrsidea waterston (Phthiraptera: Menoponidae) de emberizidae e thraupidae (Aves: Passeriformes) no Mato Grosso do Sul

SYSTEMATICS, MORPHOLOGY AND PHYSIOLOGY

Chewing lice of the genus Myrsidea waterston (Phthiraptera: Menoponidae) from the emberizidae and thraupidae (Passeriformes) in Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil

Malófagos do gênero Myrsidea waterston (Phthiraptera: Menoponidae) de emberizidae e thraupidae (Aves: Passeriformes) no Mato Grosso do Sul

Oldrich Sychra^I; Ivan Literak^I; Miroslav Capek^II

^IDept. of Biology and Wildlife Diseases, Faculty of Veterinary Hygiene and Ecology, Univ. of Veterinary and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Palackého 1-3, 612 42 Brno, Czech Republic; [e-mail]

^IIInstitute of Vertebrate Biology, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, v. v. i., Květná 8, 603 65 Brno, Czech Republic

ABSTRACT

This paper presents the first record of three chewing lice species of the genus Myrsidea collected from one emberizid and two thraupid hosts in Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil. Morphological characters of M. seminuda are added for the last redescription of this species and a new key to males of 'bonariensis species group' is presented.

Key words: Bunting, tanager

RESUMO

O presente trabalho registra pela primeira vez três espécies de malófagos do gênero Myrsidea coletadas de um emberezídeo e dois traupídeos no Mato Grosso do Sul. Caracteres morfológicos de M. seminuda são adicionados para a última redescrição da espécie e uma nova chave para identificação de machos do grupo de espécies "bonariensis" é apresentada.

Palavras-chave: Cavalaria, sanhaço, pipira

Buntings (Emberizidae) and tanagers (Thraupidae and the ensuing "Genera Incertae Sedis") are among the most speciose families within the Passeriformes (Isler & Isler 1999, Dickinson 2003). Of the 510 known species within these passerine families, 171 species occur in Brazil (Sigrist 2006). Although Price & Dalgleish (2006, 2007) and Sychra et al (2007) reviewed the species of Myrsidea Waterston parasitic on passerine birds of the families Thraupidae and Emberizidae, to date no species of this chewing louse genus have been reported from both host families hosts in Brazil. The purpose of this paper is to supplement the papers mentioned above, adding the findings of three species of Myrsidea from one emberizid and two thraupid hosts from Brazil.

We conducted fieldwork during 2006 in Mato Grosso do Sul (22º31'S, 53º30'W), Brazil. Birds were captured by mist-netting and chewing lice were collected by visual examination of feathers. For identification, they were subsequently slide-mounted in Canada balsam as permanent slides, following the technique in Palma (1978). Identification of the chewing lice was based on papers by Price & Dalgleish (2006, 2007) and Sychra et al (2007). The nomenclature of the lice follows Price et al (2003) and the bird taxonomy to the family level follows Dickinson (2003). The specimens mentioned in this paper are deposited in the Moravian Museum, Brno, Czech Republic (MZM) and in the personal collection of the first author.

A total of 37 individuals of 10 bird species belonging to the families Emberizidae and Thraupidae were examined. Fifteen birds of three species were parasitised with chewing lice and are described bellow.

Myrsidea coronae Price & Dalgleish

Type host.Paroaria coronata (Miller) (Emberizidae)

Material studied. Six males, seven females, 12 nymphs, ex. Paroaria capitata (Orbigny & Lafresnaye) (Emberizidae); BRAZIL: Ivinhema River (22º31'S, 53º30'W), Ivinhema, Mato Grosso do Sul, 12.viii.2006, Literák, I. leg.

Remarks. This is the first record of chewing lice from Paroaria capitata. Six of eight birds examined were parasitised by M. coronae.

Myrsidea ramphoceli Price & Dalgleish

Type host.Ramphocelus carbo (Pallas) (Thraupidae)

Material studied. Six males, two females, eight nymphs, ex. Ramphocelus carbo; BRAZIL: Nova Andradina (22º15'S, 53º20'W), Mato Grosso do Sul, 30.vii.2006 and 10.viii.2006; Literák, I. leg. Two males, two females, five nymphs; ex. same host species; Ivinhema River (22º31'S, 53º30'W), Ivinhema, Mato Grosso do Sul, 12.viii.2006, Literák, I. leg.

Remarks. This is the first record of M. ramphoceli from Brazil. Six of 12 birds examined were parasitised by M. ramphoceli.

Myrsidea seminuda Eichler

Type host.Thraupis palmarum (Wied) (Thraupidae)

Material studied. Two males, one female, nine nymphs, ex. Thraupis sayaca (L.); BRAZIL: Nova Andradina (22º15'S, 53º21'W), Mato Grosso do Sul, 29-30.vii.2006, Literák I & Čapek M leg.

Remarks. This is the first record of M. seminuda from Brazil. All three birds examined were parasitised by M. seminuda. Although our specimens have fit partially for the redescription of M. seminuda presented by Price & Dalgleish (2006) (that is, same shape of tergites and relative lengths of the postspiracular setae), they differ by fewer number of tergal setae and smaller dimensions as follows [tergal setae counts and dimensions mentioned by Price & Dalgleish (2006) are in parenthesis]:

Female. Tergal setae: I, 27 (27-38); II, 25 (30-41); III, 22 (31-36); IV, 25 (28-37); V, 29 (33-39); VI, 29 (29-36); VII, 23 (27-33); VIII, 16 (16-22). Sternal setae on II, 15 medioanterior and 26 marginal, including cluster of four heavy setae on each side; III, 36; IV, 34; V, 33; VI, 26; VII of subgenital plate, 14; remainder of plate with 12 marginal, 11 anterior setae.

Dimensions (in mm). Preocular width, 0.35; temple width, 0.45 (0.45-0.47); head length, 0.30 (0.31-0.32); prothorax width, 0.28 (0.29-0.31); metathorax width, 0.44 (0.43-0.46); abdomen width at level of segment IV, 0.58 (0.56-0.61); anus width, 0.20 (0.18-0.20); total length, 1.51 (1.48-1.59).

Male. Metanotum with 10 setae on posterior margin. Tergal setae: I, 23-25 (25-29); II, 26-29 (30-35); III, 28-30 (34-42); IV, 29-33 (34-42); V, 31-32 (34-42); VI, 31 (36-39); VII, 28 (31-33); VIII, 19-20 (21-22). Sternal setae on II, 8-11 medioanterior and 18-19 marginal, including cluster of three heavy setae on each side; III, 27-34; IV, 30-33; V, 29; VI, 25; VII, 16-19; VIII, 8-11; remainder of plate, 10-11.

Dimensions (in mm). Preocular width, 0.32-0.33; temple width, 0.41-0.42 (0.41-0.43); head length, 0.27-0.29 (0.28-0.30); prothorax width, 0.26-0.27 (0.27-0.29); metathorax width, 0.36 (0.34-0.40); abdomen width, 0.46-0.47 (0.44-0.46); total length, 1.23-1.25 (1.24-1.28); genitalia width (at level of bases of parameres), 0.10; genital sac sclerite length, 0.09.

These characters increase our knowledge of intraspecific morphological variability of M. seminuda. The female collected could be without doubt placed to the couplet 5 in the key to females by Price & Dalgleish (2006) and to modified couplet 5a by Sychra et al (2007). On the other hand, whether we try to identify males collected using the key by Price & Dalgleish (2006), their couplet 3 is totally unusable. We suggest replace couplets 3 and 4 by Price & Dalgleish (2006) at the end of the key to males of 'bonariensis species group' as follows:

Key to the Males of Myrsidea from Thraupidae

1 Without well-developed median gap in majority of rows of tergal setae............. 2 - With well-developed median gap in most rows of tergal setae...................... 13 2 Metanotum with six, rarely seven, marginal setae, tergite VIII with eight....................................................................... laciniaesternata Eichler - Metanotum with at least eigth marginal setae, tergite VIII with > 10.............. 3 3 Tergites IV-VI with not > 18 setae......................... ophthalmici Price & Dalgleish - Tergites IV-VI with at least 19 setae....................................................... 4 4 Temple > 0.43 wide............................................... melanopis Price & Dalgleish - Temple < 0.43 wide............................................................................... 5 5 Tergite IV with not > 29 setae................................................................... 6 - Tergite IV with at least 30 setae.............................................................. 8 6 Tergite I with < 14 setae, VIII with 14-16...................... suttoni Price & Dalgleish

- Tergite I with at least 16 setae, VIII with 15-22......................................... 7

7 Tergite III with > 24 setae; genital sac sclerite as in fig 7 [in Price & Dalgleish 2006: 7]; from Euphonia.......................................... violaceae Price & Dalgleish - Tergite III with not over 24 setae; genital sac sclerite as in fig 11 [in Price & Dalgleish 2006: 7]; from Tangara............................... cayanae Price & Dalgleish 8 Tergite I with < 20 setae................................. icterocephalae Price & Dalgleish - Tergite I with at least 20 setae............................................................... 9 9 Genital sac sclerite as in fig 23 [in Price & Dalgleish 2006: 17]...................................................................... tangarae Price & Dalgleish - Genital sac sclerite as in fig 3 or fig 11 [in Price & Dalgleish 2006: 3 and 7]..... 10 10 Postspiracular seta on VII as long as on III and V-VI, much shorter than on IV and VIII..................................................................................................... 11 - Postspiracular seta on VII as long as on IV, much longer than on III and V-VI................................................................................................... 12 11 Tergite VI < 35 setae, tergite VII < 30, temple width at least 0.41............................................................. cyanocephalae Price & Dalgleish - Tergite VI with at least 37 setae, tergite VII with >31, temple width < 0.40.................................................................................. larvatae Sychra 12 Total length at least 1.24, from Thraupis................................. seminuda Eichler - Total length < 1.21, from Tangara............................... bonariensis Malcomson 13 Is represented by couplet 12 by Price & Dalgleish (2006).

Acknowledgments

Our field work would not have been possible without the significant help and hospitality of our friends Antonio Fernando Prado from Nova Andradina and Evandro Trachta e Silva from Bataypora. The study was supported in part by the Institutional Research Projects of the Institute of Vertebrate Biology ASCR, v. v. i. No AV0Z60930519 and IAA601690901.

Received 28/VI/08.

Accepted 13/II/09.

Edited by Neusa Hamada - INPA

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• Sychra O, Literak I, Capek M, Havlicek M (2007) Chewing lice (Phthiraptera) from buntings, cardinals and tanagers (Passeriformes: Emberizidae, Cardinalidae, Thraupidae) from Costa Rica, with descriptions of two new species of the genus Myrsidea (Phthiraptera: Menoponidae). Zootaxa 1631: 57-68.

Publication Dates

• Publication in this collection
  14 Sept 2009
• Date of issue
  Aug 2009

History

• Received
  28 June 2008
• Accepted
  13 Feb 2009