Host specificity in the host-seeking larva of the dipteran parasitoidMallophora ruficaudaand the influence of age on parasitism decisions

2014 ◽  
Vol 104 (3) ◽  
pp. 295-306 ◽  
Author(s):  
M.E. Barrantes ◽  
M.K. Castelo
Keyword(s):  
Host Specificity ◽  
Host Species ◽  
Instar Larva ◽  
Distribution Area ◽  
Host Acceptance ◽  
Chemical Stimulus ◽  
Chemical Cue ◽  
Behavioural Flexibility ◽  
White Grubs ◽  
Host Seeking

AbstractLarvae of the robber flyMallophora ruficaudaare ectoparasitoids of white grubs and adults are an important apiculture pest in Argentina. Females oviposit on tall grasses and the second instar larva actively searches and locates hosts. There are nine potential hosts in the distribution area of this parasitoid andCyclocephala signaticollis(Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) is the most parasitized in the field. However,M. ruficaudahas a certain degree of behavioural flexibility towards different host species, and not being a strict specialist. The conditions under which the parasitoid orientates and accepts different hosts’ species are unknown. We studied the host specificity ofM. ruficaudatowards three species ofCyclocephalagenus and we determined whether this specificity depends on larval age. We also evaluated whether larva orientation towardsCyclocephalaspecies changes with chemical cue concentration. We assessed host specificity measuring the orientation and acceptance behaviours towards kairomones extracts and live individuals ofCyclocephalaspecies usingM. ruficaudalarvae of low and high life expectancy (i.e., young and aged second instar larvae). We observed that young larvae orientated only towardsC. signaticollischemical stimulus, whereas aged larvae orientated also towardsC. modesta, and the same was observed with increasing stimuli's concentration. Both young and agedM. ruficaudalarvae orientate towards liveC. signaticollisandC. putridaspecies and rejectedC. modesta. Also, we found that larvae accepted allCyclocephalahosts. In conclusion, our results indicate that specificity in the laboratory, observed through host orientation and host acceptance behaviours, depends not only on the availability of host species, but also on the nature of the host's stimuli combined with parasitoid age.

scholarly journals Co-extinct and critically co-endangered species of parasitic lice, and conservation-induced extinction: should lice be reintroduced to their hosts?

Oryx ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 49 (1) ◽  
pp. 107-110 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lajos Rózsa ◽  
Zoltán Vas
Keyword(s):  
Endangered Species ◽  
Host Specificity ◽  
Host Species ◽  
Conservation Status ◽  
Iucn Red List ◽  
Red List ◽  
Published Data ◽  
Common Phenomenon ◽  
Global Extinction

AbstractThe co-extinction of parasitic taxa and their host species is considered a common phenomenon in the current global extinction crisis. However, information about the conservation status of parasitic taxa is scarce. We present a global list of co-extinct and critically co-endangered parasitic lice (Phthiraptera), based on published data on their host-specificity and their hosts’ conservation status according to the IUCN Red List. We list six co-extinct and 40 (possibly 41) critically co-endangered species. Additionally, we recognize 2–4 species that went extinct as a result of conservation efforts to save their hosts. Conservationists should consider preserving host-specific lice as part of their efforts to save species.

The occurrence of species flocks in the nematode genus Cloacina (Strongyloidea : Cloacininae), parasitic in the stomachs of kangaroos and wallabies

2002 ◽  
Vol 50 (6) ◽  
pp. 597 ◽  
Author(s):  
I. Beveridge ◽  
N. B. Chilton ◽  
D. M. Spratt
Keyword(s):  
Host Specificity ◽  
Host Species ◽  
Nematode Species ◽  
Morphological Data ◽  
Species Flock ◽  
Sampling Effort ◽  
Nematode Genus ◽  
Single Host ◽  
Species Flocks ◽  
Occurrence Of Species

The occurrence of species flocks within the nematode genus Cloacina was examined using the criteria of host specificity, co-occurrence and monophyly. Species of Cloacina generally exhibited a high degree of host specificity, with most species occurring either in a single host species or in two closely related host species. The frequency distribution of numbers of component species of Cloacina per host species indicated that most host species harboured 2–4 species of nematodes, with an approximately exponential decline in the number of species of parasites to a maximum of 20 species of nematode per host species. Host species harbouring eight or more species of Cloacina were found within a single recent macropodid clade, but there was no correlation between evolutionary age of the host and the number of parasite species harboured. Sampling effort was significantly correlated with the number of nematode species found and, in partial regression analysis, subsumed the effects of host body size and geographic range, which were found to be significant correlates with the number of nematode species present in preliminary analyses. Analysis of co-occurrences of nematode species indicated significant variation between host species, with some hosts (e.g. Macropus agilis) most commonly harbouring a single species of Cloacina, while closely related host species (e.g. M. dorsalis) most commonly harboured numerous species. Parsimony analysis of species of Cloacina based on morphological data suggested that while small series of related nematode species could be identified within a single host species, the species flock in each host species is polyphyletic in origin. Species flocks contributed significantly to community richness in some host species.

scholarly journals Host specificity and phylogenetic relationships among Atlantic Ovulidae (Mollusca: Gastropoda)

2010 ◽  
Vol 79 (2) ◽  
pp. 69-78 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bastian T. Reijnen ◽  
Bert W. Hoeksema ◽  
Edmund Gittenberger
Keyword(s):  
Host Specificity ◽  
Dna Markers ◽  
Host Species ◽  
Phylogenetic Relationships ◽  
Molecular Data ◽  
Comparable Data ◽  
Netherlands Antilles ◽  
East Pacific ◽  
Cyphoma Gibbosum ◽  
Pacific Species

Ovulid gastropods and their octocoral hosts were collected along the leeward coast of Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles. New molecular data of Caribbean and a single Atlantic species were combined with comparable data of Indo-Pacific Ovulidae and a single East-Pacific species from GenBank. Based on two DNA markers, viz. CO-I and 16S, the phylogenetic relationships among all ovulid species of which these data are available are reconstructed. The provisional results suggest a dichotomy between the Atlantic and the Indo-Pacific taxa. Fully grown Simnialena uniplicata closely resembles juvenile Cyphoma gibbosum conchologically. Cymbovula acicularis and C. bahamaensis might be synonyms. The assignments of Caribbean host species for Cyphoma gibbosum, C. signatum, Cymbovula acicularis and Simnialena uniplicata are revised.

Host specificity and morphometric variation of Haemoproteus meleagridis Levine, 1961 (Protozoa: Haemosporina) in gallinaceous birds

1986 ◽  
Vol 64 (11) ◽  
pp. 2634-2638 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carter T. Atkinson
Keyword(s):  
Red Blood Cells ◽  
Host Specificity ◽  
Host Species ◽  
Blood Cells ◽  
Phasianus Colchicus ◽  
Morphometric Variation ◽  
Susceptible Host ◽  
Northern Bobwhites ◽  
Numida Meleagris ◽  
Intraperitoneal Inoculation

Haemoproteus meleagridis was transmitted to a ring-necked pheasant, Phasianus colchicus L., to a chuckar partridge, Alectoris chuckar (Gray), and to domestic turkeys by the intraperitoneal inoculation of sporozoites from pools of infected Culicoides edeni Wirth and Blanton, 1947, and Culicoides hinmani Khalaf, 1952. Guineafowl, Numida meleagris (L.), northern bobwhites, Colinus virginianus (L.), and chickens, Gallus gallus (L.), were not susceptible. Parasitemias in the infected chuckar and the infected pheasant were lower and more transient than parasitemias in domestic turkeys infected with the same number of sporozoites. Mature gametocytes of Haemoproteus meleagridis were morphologically similar in each susceptible host species. Infected red blood cells in each host species underwent increases in total area and decreases in nuclear size and area. The current taxonomy of Haemoproteus meleagridis is discussed in relation to recent revisions in the taxonomy of the avian hosts.

Certain aspects of the host-parasite relationship of Nematospiroides dubius (Baylis): V. Host specificity

Parasitology ◽  
1962 ◽  
Vol 52 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 41-48 ◽  
Author(s):  
Colin Dobson
Keyword(s):  
Host Specificity ◽  
Host Species ◽  
Adult Parasite ◽  
Male Rat ◽  
Host Parasite Relationship ◽  
Parasite Relationship ◽  
Nematospiroides Dubius ◽  
Host Parasite ◽  
Relationship Of

1. The mouse is more susceptible to infection than the rat.2. The male in both the rat and the mouse is more susceptible to infection than the female.3. The development of the worm is slower in the male rat than in the female. This relationship does not occur in the mouse.4. The ecological position of the adult parasite was different in the mouse and rat, the worms living further down the intestine in the rat.5. The effects of host species on infection of N. dubius are discussed.

A meta-analysis of host specificity in Neotropical hard ticks (Acari: Ixodidae)

2012 ◽  
Vol 103 (2) ◽  
pp. 216-224 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Nava ◽  
A.A. Guglielmone
Keyword(s):  
Host Specificity ◽  
Host Species ◽  
Tick Species ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Single Species ◽  
Sampling Effort ◽  
Hard Tick ◽  
Habitat Specificity ◽  
Hard Ticks ◽  
The Impact

AbstractHost specificity of Neotropical hard ticks (Acari: Ixodidae) was analyzed by using the number of hosts species for each tick species and the index of host specificity STD*, which integrates phylogenetic and ecological information. The analyses were based on 4172 records of hard ticks collected from wild and domestic tetrapods. Most tick species included in this study were associated with three to 20 host species. No tick species has been associated either with a single species or with a single genus of host. It was found that the number of host species is sensitive to sampling effort, but not the STD*. The most frequent values of STD* were between 2.5 and 3.5, which shows that the host species more frequently used by Neotropical hard tick species belong to different families or different orders. Immature stages tend to use a broader taxonomic range of hosts than adults, and the interpretation of both measures of host specificity used in this study led to the conclusion that the impact of non-endemic hosts does not alter the patterns of host specificity in Neotropical hard ticks. The index STD* showed that a high proportion of tick species has phylogenetically unrelated species as principal hosts. The conclusion reached in this work indicates that strict host specificity is not common among Neotropical hard ticks and suggests that the influence of tick ecology and evolution of habitat specificity, tick generation time, phenology, time spent off the host and the type of life-cycle could be more important than hosts species.

The Genus Proteocephalus in the Netherlands

1969 ◽  
Vol 43 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 207-222 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. J. Willemse
Keyword(s):  
The Netherlands ◽  
Intermediate Host ◽  
Host Specificity ◽  
Host Species ◽  
Perca Fluviatilis ◽  
Anguilla Anguilla ◽  
Intestinal Wall ◽  
Original Host ◽  
Osmerus Eperlanus ◽  
High Degree

The present paper deals with investigations on the occurrence in Netherlands' fresh water fishes and host specificity of tapeworms belonging to the genus Proteocephalus. The species involved are:P. tetrastomus (Rudoiphi, 1810) in smelt, Osmerus eperlanus.P. longicollis (Zeder, 1800) in smelt, Osmerus eperlanus.P. cernuae (Gmelin, 1790) in pope, Acerina cernua.P. ocellatus (Rudolphi, 1802) in perch, Perca fluviatilis.P. macrocephalus (Creplin, 1825) in eel, Anguilla anguilla.Seasonal cycles were found in P. telrastomus and P. ocellalus; in the latter species this was certainly induced by low winter temperatures.Experimental infections showed that a high degree of host specificity exists in all species considered. Infections of an alien host were never successful. Two kinds of infections were carried out: (a) feeding plerocercoids (in the intermediate host), coming from a known source, to a number of fishes, belonging to several species including the original host species, and (b) transplanting worms, collected from the intestine of a fish, to the intestines of a number of other fishes, belonging to several species including the original host species.Notwithstanding the high degree of host specificity, worms may survive for one or two days, but usually in a bad condition, in the intestine of an alien host. Occasionally they survived up to 14 days: e.g. P. tetratomus in Anguilla anguilla. Consequently sometimes dissections of predator fishes or carrion eating fishes may produce dubious host records because actually Proteocephalus from their prey are recorded. We are convinced that P. tetrastomus found in Salmo trutta, Platichihys flesus and Perca fluviatilis originate from Osmerus eperlanus having been eaten by these species.Additionally cannibalism may be responsible for the fact that large specimens of some fish species, e.g. smelt, are heavily infected with Proteocephalus while they hardly eat any Cyclops, the intermediate host. This is clearly demonstrated by the transplantation experiments, transplanting worms to the proper host.From the data recorded it is apparent that representatives of the genus Proteocephalus are not harmful to commercially important fishes in the Netherlands. In these fishes natural infection with the proper species of Proteocephalus is low and successful infection with other species, showing a high incidence in less valuable fishes, is prevented by the high degree of host specificity. Additionally worms of the species studied did not injure the tissues of the intestinal wall by the action of their suckers and piercing of the intestinal wall never occurred. Even smelts infected with large numbers of worms-more than 50 in a single 20 cm. specimen-did not show any abnormalities in genital development or in the amount of fat in the body cavity.

scholarly journals Horizontal transfer of parasitic sex ratio distorters between crustacean hosts

Parasitology ◽  
1998 ◽  
Vol 117 (1) ◽  
pp. 15-19 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. M. DUNN ◽  
T. RIGAUD
Keyword(s):  
Sex Ratio ◽  
Sex Determination ◽  
Host Specificity ◽  
Host Species ◽  
Horizontal Transfer ◽  
Parasite Infection ◽  
Parasite Transmission ◽  
Ratio Distortion ◽  
Sex Ratio Distortion ◽  
Crustacean Host

Parasitic sex ratio distorters were artificially transferred within and between crustacean host species in order to study the effects of parasitism on host fitness and sex determination and to investigate parasite–host specificity. Implantation of Nosema sp. to uninfected strains of its Gammarus duebeni host resulted in an active parasite infection in the gonad of recipient females and subsequent transovarial parasite transmission. The young of artificially infected females were feminized by the parasite, demonstrating that Nosema sp. is a cause of sex ratio distortion in its host. In contrast, we were unable to cross-infect Armadillidium vulgare with the feminizing microsporidian from G. duebeni or to cross-infect G. duebeni with the feminizing bacterium Wolbachia sp. from A. vulgare.

scholarly journals Expression differences in Aphidius ervi (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) females reared on different aphid host species

PeerJ ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
pp. e3640 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gabriel I. Ballesteros ◽  
Jürgen Gadau ◽  
Fabrice Legeai ◽  
Angelica Gonzalez-Gonzalez ◽  
Blas Lavandero ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Host Plant ◽  
Differentially Expressed Genes ◽  
Host Species ◽  
Host Plants ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Aphid Species ◽  
Differentially Expressed ◽  
Aphidius Ervi ◽  
Host Acceptance ◽  
Aphid Host

The molecular mechanisms that allow generalist parasitoids to exploit many, often very distinct hosts are practically unknown. The wasp Aphidius ervi, a generalist koinobiont parasitoid of aphids, was introduced from Europe into Chile in the late 1970s to control agriculturally important aphid species. A recent study showed significant differences in host preference and host acceptance (infectivity) depending on the host A. ervi were reared on. In contrast, no genetic differentiation between A. ervi populations parasitizing different aphid species and aphids of the same species reared on different host plants was found in Chile. Additionally, the same study did not find any fitness effects in A. ervi if offspring were reared on a different host as their mothers. Here, we determined the effect of aphid host species (Sitobion avenae versus Acyrthosiphon pisum reared on two different host plants alfalfa and pea) on the transcriptome of adult A. ervi females. We found a large number of differentially expressed genes (between host species: head: 2,765; body: 1,216; within the same aphid host species reared on different host plants: alfalfa versus pea: head 593; body 222). As expected, the transcriptomes from parasitoids reared on the same host species (pea aphid) but originating from different host plants (pea versus alfalfa) were more similar to each other than the transcriptomes of parasitoids reared on a different aphid host and host plant (head: 648 and 1,524 transcripts; body: 566 and 428 transcripts). We found several differentially expressed odorant binding proteins and olfactory receptor proteins in particular, when we compared parasitoids from different host species. Additionally, we found differentially expressed genes involved in neuronal growth and development as well as signaling pathways. These results point towards a significant rewiring of the transcriptome of A. ervi depending on aphid-plant complex where parasitoids develop, even if different biotypes of a certain aphid host species (A. pisum) are reared on the same host plant. This difference seems to persist even after the different wasp populations were reared on the same aphid host in the laboratory for more than 50 generations. This indicates that either the imprinting process is very persistent or there is enough genetic/allelic variation between A. ervi populations. The role of distinct molecular mechanisms is discussed in terms of the formation of host fidelity.

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