LAUSR

* Correspondence: [email protected] Birds are attacked by a remarkable diversity of ectoparasites, mostly arthropods. After lice (Insecta: Phthiraptera), the richest group is mites (Arachnida: Acari). Several mite families, with about 2500 species (Proctor and Owens, 2000), live in close association with birds being less harmful, such as feather mites (Astigmata: Analgoidea, Pterolichoidea), or severe blood feeders (Dermanyssidae and Macronyssidae). The existence and feeding of parasitic mites may cause some pathological effects like irritation, anemia, allergy, transmission of pathogens, and death as well (Chirico et al., 2003). While surveying parasitic mites associated with Egyptian birds, we recognized the need for taxonomical and ecological information that could be useful for bird biologists, veterinarians, and ornithologists interested in studying bird-associated mites. Faunistic studies about mites of birds in Egypt are limited. First reports of mites from Egyptian birds were published by Wafa and Soliman (1968) for Prostigmata (Cheyletidae), by Rakha (1980) for Astigmata, and by Zaher (1986) for mites of various orders. Abd-Alla (1993) also provided taxonomic information about mites reported from wild birds. To our knowledge, there is no taxonomic information source that contains the mite fauna of Egyptian domestic birds that helps researchers find out what taxa have been reported to date and where they were found. To establish a baseline and enhance knowledge for further work on birds’ mite fauna, this work presents data on the taxonomy and occurrence of mesostigmatid mites associated with domestic and certain wild birds in Egypt. A survey was carried out to determine the diversity and occurrence of mites associated with domestic and wild birds, and their nests. Mite samplings were conducted at different localities representing Upper and Lower Egypt, as follows: Beheira, Beni Suief, Cairo, Fayoum, Giza, Kafr Elsheikh, Minia, Sohag, and Qena. Necessary information about host, collection date, and locality was recorded. Domestic birds in poultry markets were caught with the permission of their owners. Certain wild birds were also collected from the Animal Zoo of the Giza governorate. Nests were collected from trees and various buildings, and feces were collected from poultry farms in paper bags. Abstract: A survey of gamasid mites (Arachnida: Acari: Mesostigmata) associated with domestic and wild birds in Egypt was conducted. In total, 16 species within 10 families were collected from 22 bird species. The most abundant species belonged to the genera Dermanyssus Dugès (Dermanyssidae), Ornithonyssus Sambon, and Steatonyssus Kolenati (both Macronyssidae). Among various birds examined, the distribution and occurrence of mites were recorded. Taxonomic remarks about the morphology of the collected mites are presented to facilitate species discrimination for non-acarologists. Steatonyssus longipes Radovsky & Yunker, 1963, previously described as a new species from the Egyptian slit-faced bat, Nycteris thebaica Geoffroy (Chiroptera), is first recorded from various bird hosts in Egypt. Among the examined birds, chickens, Gallus gallus domesticus (Linnaeus) (Galliformes); palm doves, Streoptopelia senigalensis aegyptiacus (Linnaeus); domestic pigeons, Columba livia domestica Gmelin (both Columbiformes); and house sparrows, Passer domesticus niloticus, were the highly mite-infested birds. Commonly, mites were observed under the wings, around the vent region, in the breast area, and around the head and neck. The present study showed that Egyptian birds harbor various species of ectoparasitic mites, with chickens having more diversity, and macronyssid and dermanyssid mites are the most abundant.