PARASITOLOGY LAB REPORT ON FLEAS, LICE AND TICKS

PREPARED BY: DEMIS WALLE

ID.NO:5695/05

SUBMITTED TO: ATO HIKA

MAY, 2014

BISHOFITU, ETHIOPIA

INTRODUCTION

In our parasitology laboratory, we investigate the morphology, structure and appearance of different types of lice, fleas and ticks.

Lice are wingless ectoparasites that have a head, a thorax which bears 3 pair of legs and an

abdomen. They have antennae but usually do not have eyes or if they do the eyes are much

reduced. The ends of the legs have claw-like structures used to hold onto hair or feathers. Lice

are all wingless and flattened in appearance. There are two main kinds of lice in the order

Phthiraptera. These are the biting and sucking lice. Biting lice are ectoparasites of birds, and

occasionally of mammals. Their mouthparts are adapted for chewing, and they munch away on skin

fragments, skin secretions, feathers and hair. Example of biting lice is damalinia. Sucking lice have

long oval bodies, and their heads are smaller than those of biting lice. Sucking lice have piercing

mouthparts, which they use to suck the blood of their hosts - mostly mammals, including man.

Examples of sucking lice include linognathus and haematopinus.

Fleas are wingless external parasites, with mouthparts adapted for piercing skin and sucking blood.They

are divided in to two as fleas without ctenidia(e.g echidonophaga and pulex) and with ctenidia(e.g

ctenocephalides).

Ticks are blood-sucking, opportunistic parasites that can attach to the skin of a variety of vertebrate

hosts. There are two families of ticks: the hard ticks (Ixodidae) and the soft ticks (Argasidae). The

Ixodidae attach to their host over a prolonged period of time (several days) while the Argasidae feed

rapidly and then drop off. Hard ticks have a hard shiny scutum - like a shield - on the dorsal surface. The

scutum covers most of the dorsal surface of the male. It is much smaller in the female allowing her to

expand enormously as she feeds and becomes engorged with blood. There are four genera under hard

ticks namely boophilus, amblyomma, hyalomma and Rhipicephalus.

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SUCKING LICE

1) HAEMATOPINUS

large in size up to 5mm

small, pointed heads and terminal mouth parts

slow moving

powerful legs

short nosed louse

head, thorax and abdomen dorsoventerally flattened

three pairs of strong legs each with a claw

antennae extend laterally from head s segment

narrow, pointed head with recessed stylets which are adapted for sucking

Haematopinus-adult 2

2) LINOGNATHUS

wingless

head is long and narrow

the front legs are smaller than the other legs

long nosed lice

small size as compared to haematopinus

 

Linognathus – adult   SEM – sucking louse

BITING LICE

 DAMALINIA CAPRAErounded anteriorlymouth parts venterallybelong to suborder ischnocera

Damalinia caprae

FLEAS

1)without ctendia

a) echidonophaga gallinae

forehead angled anteriorly

has no ctendia

echidonophaga gallinae

b)PULEX

rounded anteriorly

has no ctendia

2 With ctendia

a) CTENOCEPHALIDES FELIS

small

reddish brown in color

adults range from 1-2mm long

the head is longer(less blunt) than that of dog flea

the first two spines on the genal ctenidium are always the same

b) CTENOCEPHALIDES CANIS

head length less than twice height

spine 1 of genal ctenedium shorter than spine 2

has both genal and pointed comb

the head is more rounded than that of c.felis

short first tooth on the genal ctenidium

c.canis

HARD TICKS

1) BOOPHILUS

short and thin legs

short mouth part

eyes present

not ornate

no festoons

anal groove below anus

palpi wider than long

hexagonal basis capituli

Female boophilus

male boophilus

2) AMBLYOMMA

ornate

colored scutum

bont leg

distinct festoons

3) HYALOMMA

inornate

bont leg

have festoons

mouth parts are shorter

4) RHEPICEPHALUS

inornate

eyes and festoons are present

short palps and hypostone

hexagonal basis capituli