Biodiversity Data Journal :
Single Taxon Treatment
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Corresponding author: Paulina Kozina (paulina.kozina@ug.edu.pl)
Academic editor: Vincent Smith
Received: 29 Jan 2021 | Accepted: 29 Mar 2021 | Published: 19 Apr 2021
© 2021 Paulina Kozina, Joanna N. Izdebska, Rafał Kowalczyk
This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Citation:
Kozina P, Izdebska JN, Kowalczyk R (2021) The first description of the nymphal stages of Hoplopleura longula (Psocodea: Anoplura: Hoplopleuridae) from the harvest mouse Micromys minutus (Rodentia: Muridae). Biodiversity Data Journal 9: e63747. https://doi.org/10.3897/BDJ.9.e63747
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Despite the widespread belief that an extensive body of knowledge exists for the sucking lice (Anoplura), some of their common, Eurasian or even cosmopolitan species still lack complete taxonomic descriptions, especially those for their nymphal stages. This applies especially to the most common rodent parasites: the lice of the genus Hoplopleura. In Europe, only two of the five most common Hoplopleura species have full taxonomic characteristics with a description of the nymphal stages. This study enriches the current state of knowledge for another species, Hoplopleura longula and presents the first description of its nymphal stages.
The study includes five rare louse specimens (two nymphs I, one nymph II, two nymphs III) of H. longula collected from 63 Eurasian harvest mice Micromys minutus. The collected lice were fixed and preserved in 70% ethyl alcohol solution and then placed in polyvinyl-lactophenol to form total preparations.
Only two of the five species found in Eurasia (H. acanthopus, H. affinis, H. captiosa, H. edentula and H. longula) have been given full taxonomic descriptions, including immature stages. This paper presents a description of the nymphal stages of H. longula (described for the first time).
mammals, parasite, rodents, sucking lice, taxonomy
Sucking lice (Psocodea: Anoplura) are obligatory, permanent ectoparasites of mammals. Lice complete their entire lifecycle on their host and it includes: egg, three nymphal stages (nymph I, nymph II, nymph III) and an adult stage (imago). Some past research on this group has focused on their relationship with humans (e.g.
Approximately 70% of Anoplura are associated with rodents (Rodentia), the most abundant group of mammals in terms of species (
Numerous publications concerning the ectoparasites of European fauna mention the presence of lice on rodents and insectivores (e.g.
Five louse specimens were included in this study (two nymphs I, one nymph II and two nymphs III). These were isolated from four (out of 63 examined individuals) Eurasian harvest mice Micromys minutus (Pallas, 1771), obtained from the Scientific Collection of the Mammal Research Institute Polish Academy of Sciences in Białowieża (Table
Host specimens examined, louse life stages found and their location, with data on depositing in the Museum collections.
Host number |
Host data (sex, collecting date, museum number) |
Collected parasites |
Parasites localisation on the host body |
Museum specimens numbers |
1 |
male, 15.07.1950, Bialowieza National Park |
eggs |
dorsal: left side of the body |
- |
2 |
male, 21.06.1949, Bialowieza National Park |
eggs |
dorsal: left side of the body |
- |
3 |
male, 01.08.1949, Bialowieza National Park |
eggs |
dorsal: tail area |
- |
4 |
male, 26.08.1949, Bialowieza National Park |
eggs |
dorsal: right side of the body |
- |
5 |
male, 08.09.1949, Bialowieza National Park |
eggs |
ventral: right side of the body |
- |
6 |
male, 06.11.1949, Bialowieza National Park |
eggs |
ventral: left side of the body |
- |
7 |
female, 07.01.1949, Bialowieza National Park |
2♀♀, 1♂ |
♀ dorsal: right side of the body; ventral: right side of the body ♂ dorsal: right side of the body (closer to the centre) |
UGDIZPMMmHHl1f, UGDIZPMMmHHl2f, UGDIZPMMmHHl1m, |
8 |
male, 20.09.1949, Bialowieza National Park |
2♀♀, 1♂, 1 N1 |
♀ ventral: neck area, right side of the body ♂ dorsal: right side of the body N1 dorsal: area between the ears |
UGDIZPMMmHHl3f, UGDIZPMMmHHl4f, UGDIZPMMmHHl2m, UGDIZPMMmHHl1N1 |
9 |
male, 08.12.1949, Bialowieza National Park |
1♀, 1 N1, 1 N2 |
♀ dorsal: left side of the body and tail area N1, N2 ventral: left side of the body |
UGDIZPMMmHHl5f, UGDIZPMMmHHl2N1, UGDIZPMMmHHl1N2 |
10 |
female, 07.10.1949, Bialowieza National Park |
1♂, 2 N3 |
♂ dorsal: right side of the body N3 dorsal: area between the eyes, left side of the body |
UGDIZPMMmHHl3m, UGDIZPMMmHHl1N3 UGDIZPMMmHHl2N3 |
11 |
male, 25.08.1949, Bialowieza National Park |
eggs |
eggs dorsal: right side of the body; ventral: right side of the body |
- |
Lice were collected from dead rodent specimens by combing the fur with tweezers and the specimens were fixed and preserved in 70% ethyl alcohol. The specimens, intended for analysis of morphological traits, were immersed in polyvinyl-lactophenol to develop total preparations for light microscope examination (
Topographic preferences were observed. The entire body surface area of the test hosts was analysed and all locations were marked; this allowed for a complete (intensive) analysis of the topography.
The names and abbreviations of individual setae or body parts are provided following
Abbreviations of head and thorax:
Abbreviations of abdomen:
Type host: Micromys minutus (Pallas, 1771)
Other hosts: Myodes glareolus Schreber, 1780 in
Microtus arvalis Pallas, 1778 and Sorex araneus Linnaeus, 1758 in
Nymph I (Figs
Means and ranges of different immature stages of Hoplopleura longula [in mm].
Features |
Nymph I [N = 2] |
Nymph II [N = 1] |
Nymph III [N = 2] |
Head length |
0.12 [0.12-0.12] |
0.18 |
0.14 [0.13-0.14] |
Head width |
0.12 [0.11-0.12] |
0.12 |
0.12 [0.11-0.12] |
Thorax length |
0.09 [0.09-0.10] |
0.10 |
0.18 [0.12-0.23] |
Thorax width |
0.18 [0.17-0.20] |
0.18 |
0.20 [0.19-0.22] |
Abdomen length |
0.32 [0.32-0.32] |
0.51 |
0.56 [0.52-0.61] |
Abdomen width |
0.24 [0.23-0.24] |
0.33 |
0.45 [0.41-0.48] |
Whole body length |
0.53 [0.53-0.54] |
0.78 |
0.87 [0.87-0.88] |
Nymph II (Figs
Nymph III (Figs
The lice demonstrated topographic preferences - a tendency for congregating along the sides of the host’s body and on both sides of the head (between the ears and on the neck) (Fig.
In the present study, only H. longula was found amongst the lice. Despite the fact that there are also other species parasitising M. minutus, for example, of the genus Polyplax given in literature (
The harvest mouse M. minutus is considered to be the main host of H. longula; it has not been recorded in any other hosts to date (
Individual nymphs of H. longula are easily identifiable. Nymph I possessed four major abdominal setae and an elongated, ovoid abdomen. Nymph II possessed eight MAS and a barrel-shaped abdomen. Like nymph II, nymph III possessed eight MAS; however, its abdomen is elongated and ovoid. In addition, like nymph I, the body of the adult individual can be seen inside the nymph.
Regarding the location of the lice on the host, no comparative data are available in previous studies regarding the H. longula-M. minutus relationship. Despite this, similarities can be found with the distribution of H. acanthopus on Microtus arvalis (
Current research indicates that H. longula is a rare species associated with only one, also rare host, M. minutus. This is the first description of all three nymphal stages of H. longula. This characteristic will support other researchers working on lice to make positive identifications which will benefit future research examining host-parasite associations.