Geographic distribution, horizontal transfer and speciation in feather mites (Astigmata) in Brazil

• Grant number: 16/11671-1
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• Start date: February 01, 2017
• End date: April 01, 2022
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Zoology - Taxonomy of Recent Groups
• Principal Investigator: José Paulo Leite Guadanucci
• Grantee: Luiz Gustavo de Almeida Pedroso
• Host Institution: Instituto de Biociências (IB). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Rio Claro. Rio Claro , SP, Brazil
• Associated scholarship(s): 18/21504-0 - Host shift, geographic distribution and speciation of feather mites (Astigmata) in Brazil, BE.EP.DR

Abstract

Feather mites are the most diverse ectocommensals associated with birds, found on all major avian lineages. Their distribution tends to match that of their hosts, even for cosmopolitan birds, albeit isolate bird populations may have a distinct mite fauna. Molecular techniques such as barcoding have revealed cryptic mite species on different bird populations, with a faster speciation rate among wing and tail mites than from other microhabitats. Feather mites are mostly transmitted vertically through parental care and as a result, each bird species tends to have a specific mite fauna. Another mode of transmission, much less understood, is horizontally between different bird species. Among birds with a higher chance of horizontal transmission of parasites are the brood parasites, whose chicks are raised by foster parents. This project aims to investigate the distribution, host transfer, the morphology and speciation of feather mites in birds of Brazil, using traditional and molecular tools, mainly from the shiny cowbird, Molothrus bonariensis (Passeriformes: Icteridae), an obligate brood parasite, and their main hosts in Brazil.

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

PEDROSO, LUIZ GUSTAVO A.; HERNANDES, FABIO AKASHI. Two new feather mite species of the family Analgidae (Acariformes: Analgoidea) from the Rufous-collared Sparrow Zonotrichia capensis (Muller, 1776) (Passeriformes: Passerellidae). Zootaxa, v. 4461, n. 2, p. 233-244, AUG 21 2018. (16/11671-1)

DE ALMEIDA PEDROSO, LUIZ GUSTAVO; HERNANDES, FABIO AKASHI. An unexpected finding of mammal mites (Psoroptidia: Sarcoptoidea) on a bird. ACAROLOGIA, v. 58, n. 4, p. 963-966, 2018. (16/11671-1)

Academic Publications

(References retrieved automatically from State of São Paulo Research Institutions)

PEDROSO, Luiz Gustavo de Almeida. Horizontal transfer, geographic distribution and speciation of feather mites in Brazil (Astigmata). 2022. Doctoral Thesis - Universidade Estadual Paulista (Unesp). Instituto de Biociências. Rio Claro Rio Claro.