James W. Mertins

HAIR-LOSS SYNDROME IN BLACK-TAILED DEER OF THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST

A widespread hair-loss syndrome (HLS) has affected Columbian black-tailed deer (Odocoileus hemionus columbianus) in western Oregon and Washington (USA) since 1996. In order to better characterize the condition, 21 HLS-affected black-tailed deer (BTD) were necropsied, and body condition, parasite burdens, and significant lesions were noted. All deer were in poor body condition, and at least 17 had severe internal parasite burdens. A consistent finding was the presence of large numbers of chewing lice, identified as an indeterminate species of Damalinia (Cervicola). Four animals were infested with intrafollicular Demodex sp., the first report of this genus of mites in BTD. We postulate that the hair loss is largely due to ectoparasitism by a species of chewing louse that represents a new pathogen for BTD. This loss of pelage also may be an important contributor to the poor body condition of these animals.

Exotic Ectoparasites of Ostriches Recently Imported into the United States

Eleven species of ectoparasitic arthropods were collected and identified from ostriches (Struthio camelus) recently imported into the United States from Africa and Europe. Four of these species are reported from ostriches for the first time. The parasites included adult hippoboscid flies (Struthiobosca struthionis) and 10 species of adult ixodid ticks (Amblyomma gemma, A. lepidum, A. variegatum, Haemaphysalis punctata, Hyalomma albiparmatum, H. luscitanicum, H. marginatum rufipes, H. truncatum, Hyalomma sp., and Rhipicephalus turanicus. As a result of these findings, the U.S. Department of Agriculture prohibited further importation into the United States of ostriches and other flightless birds on an interim basis.

BURROWING FLY LARVAE (PHILORNIS PORTERI) ASSOCIATED WITH MORTALITY OF EASTERN BLUEBIRDS IN FLORIDA

We investigated mortality among nestling eastern bluebirds (Sialia sialis) in Polk and Highlands counties, Florida (USA) in 1999–2001. At least six species of maggots from three families of muscoid flies, Calliphoridae, Sarcophagidae, and Muscidae were found associated with the nestlings. Philornis porteri, the only species of obligate bird parasite collected, was found in the contents of two nests, in the ear canal and the musculature of the jaw of one nestling, and in the abdominal subcutis of another. This is the first record of bluebird parasitism by P. porteri. Although some nestlings were infested by tissue-invading fly larvae antemortem, the role of these maggots in the overall mortality was not clear.

First at-large record of Amblyomma parvum (Acari: Ixodidae) in the United States

Abstract An adult male of Amblyomma parvum Aragão, 1908 was collected from a biologist performing field work in Key Largo, Monroe County, Florida, USA, on 30 November 2004. Intermittent surveys from 2004–2009, including examination of wildlife and tick drags, failed to detect additional specimens of A. parvum in Key Largo. This is the first collection of a free-living A. parvum in the United States, although it has been found there once before on a quarantined animal entering from Paraguay.

Mite-Filled Cyst on a Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater) in Florida, USA

A large, partly pedunculated mass on the scapular area of a wild-caught captive Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater) consisted of a multiloculated keratin cyst inhabited by a new species of harpirhynchid mite (Harpirhynchus quasimodo). The mass did not interfere with flight or behavior. This is the first record of such an infestation of cowbirds in Florida.

Generalized Demodecosis in Three Sibling, Juvenile Rock Hyraxes (Procavia capensis)

Abstract One female and two male 4-mo-old, sibling rock hyraxes (Procavia capensis) presented with severe generalized dermatitis characterized by nonpruritic, nonalopecic, mildly encrusted, focally ulcerated pustular nodules. The dorsum, limbs, and dorsal cranium were most severely affected. Skin scrapings, histopathology, and scanning electron microscopy revealed the presence of various life stages of a novel Demodex sp. As a result of the generalized nature of infestation, treatment began with ivermectin and then changed to doramectin, at a dose of 0.6 mg/kg s.c. every 7 days. Weekly skin scrapings and intermittent blood work, including serum protein electrophoresis, were used to evaluate treatment response. Complete resolution, as determined by two consecutive negative skin scrapings, was noted in all three hyraxes within 10–14 wk.

Hyperplastic Dermatitis Associated with Acariasis in a Siamang (Symphalangus syndactylus)

Abstract A 36-yr-old male captive siamang (Symphalangus syndactylus) was evaluated for mange in the form of generalized alopecia, flaky skin, and pruritus of 1 mo duration. Multiple skin scrapings and biopsies revealed high numbers of trombidiiform mites identified as Psorobia (formerly Psorergates) sp. near cercopitheci (Acarina: Psorergatidae) based on morphologic characteristics. Prolonged repetitive treatment with ivermectin killed the mites and resolved the clinical signs. Psorergatid mites should be considered as a cause of dry flaky skin in even long-term captive siamangs or other primates. This is the first record of psorergatid mites from a primate host in the family Hylobatidae.

Ectoparasites of the blackbuck antelope (Antilope cervicapra).

Fifty-two free-ranging blackbuck antelope (Antilope cervicapra) from Texas were examined for ectoparasites. Two species of sucking lice (Anoplura), one species of chewing louse (Mallophaga), one species of louse fly (Diptera), and three species of ticks (Acari) were found. This is the first report of the anoplurans Linognathus cervicaprae and L. pithodes from the Western Hemisphere. The southern deer ked (Lipoptena mazamae), the winter tick (Dermacentor albipictus), and the rabbit tick (Haemaphysalis leporispalustris) are reported from blackbuck for the first time. The lone star tick (Amblyomma americanum) and the mallophagan (Damalinia cornuta cornuta) were reported previously from blackbuck in Texas, the latter species under the name Tricholipeurus balanicus balanicus.

First Record of Chewing Lice, Damalinia (Tricholipeurus) lipeuroides and D. parallela (Phthiraptera: Trichodectidae), on White-tailed Deer (Mammalia: Cervidae) in the U.S. Virgin Islands, with a Review of Other Such Introductions Worldwide

In pre-Columbian times, the only large terrestrial mammals extant in the Greater Antilles and Leeward Islands were humans and their domestic dogs. White-tailed deer, Odocoileus virginianus (Zimmerman), were first introduced from the southeastern United States to what is now the U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI) by European colonists in 1790 (Heffelfinger 2011, Pp. 3–39 In Biology and Management of White-tailed Deer, CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL), and deer from an unknown source were brought to Puerto Rico in the 1930s but were later extirpated (Woods 1996, Pp. 131–148 In The Scientific Survey of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands: An Eighty-year Reassessment of the Islands’ Natural History [Ann. N.Y. Acad. Sci. 776: 1–273], N.Y. Academy of Sciences, New York). Before their elimination, a small number of the Puerto Rican deer were removed to and established in St. Kitts in 1931 (Horwith and Lindsay 2000, A Biodiversity Profile of St. Kitts and Nevis. Island Resources Foundation, St. John’s, Antigua, http://www. irf.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/BiodiversityProfile_StKitts-Nevis.pdf ). After 220 y, free-ranging populations of white-tailed deer currently persist in St. Croix, St. John, and St. Thomas, USVI. In 1966, white-tailed deer were reintroduced to Puerto Rico and established in Isla de Culebra (Woods 1996). In the mid-19th Century, white-tailed deer from either Mexico or the Florida Keys (Heffelfinger 2011; Lever