Megninia ginglymura feather mite infestation in a Hamburg poultry flock in the United Kingdom.

BACKGROUND: A flock of rare breed poultry was heavily infested with small white mites. Although apparently not harming the birds, the mites were identified in order to access data on veterinary/medical significance and to decide upon appropriate treatment. OBJECTIVES: To determine the identity of the mites, assess their potential impact on the host birds and to apply a chemical treatment regime. ANIMALS: Twelve, 5-month-old Hamburg large fowl kept on a UK farm owned by the second author. They were housed together on shavings in an indoor pen with a grass outdoor run. All were hatched on the farm and never left it. METHODS: Mites were identified using taxonomic identification keys and morphological descriptions. Nine birds were treated topically with 0.25% fipronil at 8 mL/kg on one occasion, while three birds were separated and left untreated as a control. RESULTS: The infesting species was the feather mite Megninia ginglymura. Treated birds were mite-free after three weeks, whereas untreated ones were still heavily infested. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: This is the first published report of such a heavy infestation of M. ginglymura in poultry in the UK and the first time topical fipronil has been used to eradicate these mites. The case is highlighted because, although asymptomatic in this instance, such infestations may be injurious to birds in different rearing regimes.

Acari in archaeology.

Mites and ticks (Acari) have been found in a variety of archaeological situations. Their identification has enabled data on habitat and dietary preferences to be obtained, and these have been used to interpret study sites. Despite this, Acari are not routinely considered in analyses in the way that other environmental components are. Like forensic science, archaeology draws on biological material to rebuild past human activity, and acarology has the potential to provide a much greater amount of evidence to both than is currently the case. As an aid to workers in these fields, an overview is presented of the Acari that have been extracted from archaeological samples, the situations in which they were found and the contribution their presence can make to the interpretation of sites.

Forensic acarology: an introduction.

Mites can be found in all imaginable terrestrial habitats, in freshwater, and in salt water. Mites can be found in our houses and furnishings, on our clothes, and even in the pores of our skin-almost every single person carries mites. Most of the time, we are unaware of them because they are small and easily overlooked, and-most of the time-they do not cause trouble. In fact, they may even proof useful, for instance in forensics. The first arthropod scavengers colonising a dead body will be flies with phoretic mites. The flies will complete their life cycle in and around the corpse, while the mites may feed on the immature stages of the flies. The mites will reproduce much faster than their carriers, offering themselves as valuable timeline markers. There are environments where insects are absent or rare or the environmental conditions impede their access to the corpse. Here, mites that are already present and mites that arrive walking, through air currents or material transfer become important. At the end of the ninetieth century, the work of Jean Pierre Mégnin became the starting point of forensic acarology. Mégnin documented his observations in 'La Faune des Cadavres' [The Fauna of Carcasses]. He was the first to list eight distinct waves of arthropods colonising human carcasses. The first wave included flies and mites, the sixth wave was composed of mites exclusively. The scope of forensic acarology goes further than mites as indicators of time of death. Mites are micro-habitat specific and might provide evidential data on movement or relocation of bodies, or locating a suspect at the scene of a crime. Because of their high diversity, wide occurrence, and abundance, mites may be of great value in the analysis of trace evidence.