title: A nonchemical method of controlling the northern fowl mite, Ornithonyssus sulviarum (Canestrini and Fanzago), on caged White Leghorn hens.
abstract: Populations of the northern fowl mite on hens but not on roosters were significantly reduced relative to normally feathered chickens when feathers in the vent area were clipped to 2 to 3 mm length. The average difference in egg production between the control (no mites) and the clipped mite-infested hens was only 2.6% during the 22-week study, but the average difference between the control and the unclipped mite-infested hens was 7.6%, which was significantly different (P less than .01). Egg weight, hen body weight, and feed consumption of the three groups of hens were not significantly different.
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002645:Chickens; D005241:Feathers; D005260:Female; D008297:Male; D008924:Mite Infestations / Q000628:therapy / Q000662:veterinary*; D011201:Poultry Diseases / Q000628:therapy*