Norwegian scabies is a highly contagious skin infestation caused by an ectoparasite, Scarcoptes scabiei var. Hominis, which mainly affects immunosuppressed individuals. Clinically, it may simulate various dermatoses such as psoriasis, Darier's disease, seborrheic dermatitis, among others. This is a case report of a 33-year-old woman, immunocompetent, diagnosed with generalized anxiety disorder ...

Measurement of corticosterone has become a useful tool for assessing the response of individuals to ecological stressors of interest. Enhanced corticosterone levels can promote survival of stressful events; however, in situations where a stressor persists and corticosterone levels remain elevated, the adrenocortical response can be detrimental. A potential ecological stressor for wild birds is ...

Hesperomyces virescens is a fungal ectoparasite (Laboulbeniales) that infects adult ladybirds. Research has recently focused on this parasite due to the discovery of its prevalence on the globally invasive harlequin ladybird Harmonia axyridis and for its potential use in studies of co-evolution and pathogen spread. We collected adults from ten species of ladybirds in the Western Cape Province, ...

Polyplax spinulosus, the common rat louse, is easily infected with the virus of typhus by feeding on infected rats. As in the case of Pediculus humanus, such feedings are followed by the appearance of large numbers of Rickettsia prowazeki within the gut of the insect. The virus of Mexican typhus can be transmitted from rat to rat by Polyplax spinulosus by methods of feeding simulating natural c...

The argasid tick Carios (Ornithodoros) kelleyi Cooley & Kohls is a common ectoparasite of bats and has been found in massive numbers in homes with associated bat colonies in eastern Iowa. This tick feeds nearly exclusively on bats in nature. Several inhabitants of infested homes complained of "bug bites" at night while asleep that may have resulted in erythematous, edematous, urticaric skin les...

Avian lice occupy different habitats in the host plumage that the physical environment outside the host body may affect in several ways. Interactions between host plumage and water may be an important source of such effects. Here, we use a comparative approach to examine the effect of a host's diving behavior on the taxonomic richness of its lice. Louse genera richness was significantly lower i...

Ornithodoros (Alectorobius) capensis Neumann, an ectoparasite of seabirds found circumglobally in the tropics and subtropics, has become established along the southeastern seacoast of the United States. The tick has been found feeding primarily on brown pelicans, Pelecanus occidentalis, but also has been found on the laughing gull, Larus atricilla, and the American oystercatcher, Haematopus pal...