Abstract

TLAPAYA-ROMERO, Liliana et al. Prevalence and abundance of bat flies associated to a cave-dwelling bat community in La Trinitaria, Chiapas, Mexico. Rev. Mex. Biodiv. [online]. 2015, vol.86, n.2, pp.377-385. ISSN 2007-8706.  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rmb.2015.04.012.

Batflies (Diptera: Streblidae) were studied in a community of bats in the cave of San Francisco, Chiapas. Data were collected between February and August 2013 through capture and review of 569 individuals of 12 species of bats. Three bat flies species were identified: Trichobius joblingi , Metelasmus pseudopterus and Megistopoda aranea ; T. joblingi occurred in 6 species of bats showing the highest values of prevalence and abundance. In this work, the co-occurrence of these 3 species in Artibeus jamaicensis reported for the first time in Mexico, and the presence of T. joblingi is a new record for A. jamaicensis and Pteronotus parnellii in Chiapas. The higher prevalence and abundance of T. joblingi occurred in females of Desmodus rotundus and juveniles of A. jamaicensis , although no differences in the intensity of infection were found, indicating that biological characteristics such as sex and age of the host may influence ectoparasite-host relationship. It is suggested that the prevalence, abundance and intensity of infection of external parasites may also be related to social behavior patterns and roosting habits.

Keywords : Chiroptera; Diptera: Streblidae; Ectoparasite; Host; Infection intensity; Roosting-sites; Trichobius joblingi.

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