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Feeding Habits of Symbiotic Mesostigmatid Mites of Mammals in Relation to Pathogen-Vector Potentials¹

Feeding tests on six species of laelaptid and haemogamasid mites and one species of dermanyssid mite are reported. Haemogamasus ambulans (Thorell) appears to have generalized tastes, feeding on fluid or dried blood of vertebrates, flea feces, and living or dead arthropods. Reproduction and indefinite maintenance on diets of arthropods or dried blood were demonstrated. Skin penetration of vertebrate hosts was exhibited only rarely. Echinolaelaps echidninus (Berlese) and Haemolaelaps glasgowi (Ewing) also proved to be general feeders, but additionally, the latter species attacked intact, vertebrate skin, feeding on exuding tissue fluids. In limited tests, Brevisterna utahensis (Ewing) did not penetrate intact skin but fed quite readily on either dry or fluid blood. Haemogamasus oudemansi Hirst fed on free, liquid blood, but refused to penetrate skin or to feed on dry blood. Haemogamasus liponyssoides Ewing appears to be an obligatory blood feeder. It penetrated intact host skin and engorged on blood. It would not feed on dried blood or on small arthropods. Ornithonyssus bacoti (Hirst), serving as a control, pierced the host skin and fed on blood.

¹ This investigation was supported in part by Research Grant E-1509 from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, of the National Institutes of Health, Public Health Service.