Fleas associated with non‐flying small mammal communities from northern and central Chile: with new host and locality records

Abstract

Fleas associated with small mammals from seven localities from northern and central Chile were assessed. We captured 352 small mammals belonging to 12 species from which we obtained 675 fleas belonging to 15 different species. The most frequently captured flea species were Neotyphloceras crassispina crassispina (n = 198) and N. chilensis (n = 175). High values of flea species richness and diversity were found in Fray Jorge National Park (NP), a north-central Chilean site, whereas the highest values of mean abundance (MA) and prevalence were found in three diverse sites that include Los Molles River, a high altitude site located in north-central Chile, Fray Jorge NP and Dichato, in south-central Chile. On the other hand, high values of flea richness and diversity were found on two rodent species, Abrothrix olivacea and A. longipilis, whereas the highest values of MA and prevalence were found on Oligoryzomys longicaudatus, A. longipilis and Phyllotis xanthopygus. A total of three new host recordings, nine new localities and nine new host species and locality recordings are reported. Also, this study represents the first known record of Tetrapsyllus (Tetrapsyllus) comis in Chile and the first ecological analysis of Neotyphloceras chilensis.

Fleas of the genusNeotyphlocerasassociated with rodents from Bolivia: new host and distributional records, description of a new species and remarks on the morphology ofNeotyphloceras rosenbergi

“…Allen, 1900, Phyllotis amicus Thomas, 1900, Phyllotis arenarius [syn. Phyllotis xanthopygus (Waterhouse, 1837)], Phyllotis darwini (Waterhouse, 1837), Rattus rattus (Linnaeus, 1758) (Rothschild, ; Johnson, ; Hopkins & Rothschild, ; Bazán‐León et al ., ).…”

“…Fleas in the genus Neotyphloceras Rothschild are parasites of both rodents and marsupials, and are currently known only from Neotropical mammals (Hopkins & Rothschild, ; Sanchez et al ., ; Bazán‐León et al ., ; Sanchez & Lareschi, ). Currently, Neotyphloceras includes six species and subspecies: Neotyphloceras rosenbergi (Rothschild, ); Neotyphloceras crassispina crassispina Rothschild, 1914; Neotyphloceras chilensis Jordan, 1936; Neotyphloceras crassispina hemisus Jordan, 1936; Neotyphloceras crackensis Sanchez & Lareschi, 2014, and Neotyphloceras pardinasii Sanchez & Lareschi, 2014.…”

Revision of fleas of the genus Plocopsylla belonging to the ‘angusticeps–lewisi’ complex in the Andean biogeographic region, with the description of a new species

“…In Argentina, the Andean region has the greatest diversity of flea species, some of which extend their distribution towards the South American transition zone, and 60% of flea species and subspecies are represented in the Patagonian subregion (Autino & Lareschi, ; Beaucournu & Castro, ; Sanchez & Lareschi, , ). Within the Andean region, the Stephanocircidae represent one of the most commonly found families of fleas and show high diversity and some endemism (Hopkins & Rothschild, ; Beaucournu & Gallardo, , ; Beaucournu & Castro, ; Bazán‐León et al ., ; Sanchez, ).…”

“…: + 54 221 4232140; Fax: + 54 221 4232327; E-mail: julianasanchez@cepave.edu.ar & Lareschi, , 2014. Within the Andean region, the Stephanocircidae represent one of the most commonly found families of fleas and show high diversity and some endemism (Hopkins & Rothschild, 1956;Beaucournu & Gallardo, 1991, 1992Beaucournu & Castro, 2003;Bazán-León et al, 2013;Sanchez, 2013).…”

Two new species of Neotyphloceras (Siphonaptera: Ctenophthalmidae) from Argentinean Patagonia

“…Neotyphloceras is an Andean-Patagonian taxon of fleas that are parasites of rodents and marsupials (Hastriter 2001;Lareschi et al 2010;Sanchez et al 2012). Three species and two subspecies of Neotyphloceras are distributed from Venezuela to southern Chile and Argentina (Hopkins & Rothschild 1966;Smit 1968;Sanchez et al 2012;Bazán-León et al 2013). Males of these species and subspecies are defined principally on the basis of the length, shape and chaetotaxy of the fixed process of the clasper (Rothschild 1914;Jordan 1936).…”