Fur chirodiscid mites (Sarcoptiformes: Chirodiscidae): permanent ectosymbionts associated with bats in Mexico
2026 - Volume: 66 Issue: Suppl pages: 104
https://doi.org/10.24349/ucfi-5sjz
ICA 2026 - XVII International Congress of Acarology, 20-24 July 2026, Montpellier
Keywords
Chirodiscidae
Bat-ectoparasites
Taxonomy
Abstract
Fur mites of the family Chirodiscidae are permanent ectosymbionts characterized by unique adaptations to get food resources at the base of the hair follicles. These chirodiscids comprise 228 described species associated with mammalian hosts such as Marsupialia, Afrosoricida, Primates, Eulipotyphla, Carnivora, and Rodentia with some degree of specificity. Still, the greatest diversity occurs within the tribe Labidocarpini, which comprises 168 recognized species across 20 genera, all associated with bats worldwide. Through expeditions in several regions of Mexico, exhaustive examinations of bat hosts were made to collect fur mites using fine forceps by removing each hair, which were mounted in Hoyer’s medium. Subsequently, a comparative study was performed to define the morpho-meristic differential characteristics of each species using phase-contrast microscopy (PhC), differential interference contrast (DIC) (Zeiss Axiscope 2 (PhC); Zeiss AxioVision DIC), and the measurement of body variables using an ocular micrometer and/or AxioVision software. Specimens from the A. Fain collection of the Royal Institute of Natural Sciences in Brussels, Belgium, were reviewed for comparative analyses. To date, nine nominated species have been identified in the country and eight new species have been discovered. Notably, a new species of the genus Paralabidocarpus was found on the vampire bat Diphylla ecaudata Spix, 1823, an A. ricardoguerreroi Morales-Malacara and Vázquez-Xicoténcatl, 2025, recently described from the common vampire bat Desmodus rotundus (Geoffroy, 1810) found exclusively in the state of Oaxaca. The latter represents an enigma regarding the evolutionary history of these mites, since Alabidocarpus mites have never been found in any other region in Mexico, nor in any other area within the wide distribution of the common vampire bat in America. It should be noted that the study of this species included the description of all developmental stages, with exhaustive meristic detail of each idiosomal structure and the legs. This deep morphological scrutiny provides an uncommon level of biological resolution within Chirodiscidae, and reveals the need for taxonomic attention as the chirodiscid fauna of Mexico is likely more diverse than currently documented. Financial assistance was provided by DGAPA, UNAM, grant No. IN219226.
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