title: Feather mites (Acari, Astigmata) from Azorean passerines (Aves, Passeriformes): lower species richness compared to European mainland.
abstract: Ten passerine species were examined on three islands of the Azores (North Atlantic) during 2013 and 2014 in order to identify their feather mite assemblages. We recorded 19 feather mite species belonging to four families of the superfamily Analgoidea (Analgidae, Proctophyllodidae, Psoroptoididae and Trouessartiidae). A high prevalence of feather mite species was recorded on the majority of the examined host species. Only three passerine species (Sylvia atricapilla, Regulus regulus and Serinus canaria) presented the same full complex of mite species as commonly occurs in the plumage of their closest relatives in continental Europe. Passer domesticus presented the same limited fauna of feather mites living in the plumage as do its co-specifics in continental Europe. Carduelis carduelis bears the same feather mite species as do most of its continental populations in Europe, but it lacks one mite species occurring on this host in Egypt. Turdus merula, Pyrrhula murina and Fringilla coelebs are missing several mite species common to their continental relatives. This diminution could be explained by the founder effect, whereby a limited number of colonizing individuals did not transport the full set of feather mite species, or by the extinction of some mite species after initially having reached the Azores. The only individual of Motacilla cinerea sampled in this study presented a new host record for the mite species Trouessartia jedliczkai.
authors: CIBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado, Pólo dos Açores, Universidade dos Açores, 9501-801 Ponta Delgada, Portugal.
authors: Pedro
authors: P
authors: Rodrigues
authors: Zoological Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, 199034 Saint Petersburg, Russia.
authors: Sergey
authors: S
authors: Mironov
authors: Faculty of Veterinary Hygiene and Ecology, Department of Biology and Wildlife Diseases, University of Veterinary and Pharmaceutical Sciences Brno, Palackeho 1-3, 61242 Brno, Czech Republic.
authors: Oldrich
authors: O
authors: Sychra
authors: CIBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado, Pólo dos Açores, Universidade dos Açores, 9501-801 Ponta Delgada, Portugal.
authors: Roberto
authors: R
authors: Resendes
authors: Faculty of Veterinary Hygiene and Ecology, Department of Biology and Wildlife Diseases, University of Veterinary and Pharmaceutical Sciences Brno, Palackeho 1-3, 61242 Brno, Czech Republic.
authors: Ivan
authors: I
authors: Literak
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001394:Azores / Q000453:epidemiology; D001715:Bird Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000469:parasitology*; D005060:Europe; D005241:Feathers / Q000469:parasitology; D008924:Mite Infestations / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000469:parasitology / Q000662:veterinary*; D008925:Mites / Q000145:classification*; D046109:Passeriformes / Q000469:parasitology*; D015995:Prevalence; D013045:Species Specificity