Acari (Parasitiformes and Acariformes) From Mexico: Analysis of Their Geographical and Host Distribution in Rodentia (Cricetidae).

The study of Acari associated with cricetid rodents in Mexico began at the end of the 1930s. Despite efforts to gathering the information, only listings were built, but none of these studies present an analysis of the available data. A search was made through electronic databases; in addition, some not published records contained at Collection of Laboratorio de Acarología, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México were included in the inventory. Combining the literature records and those deposited in the collection, the total number of species of Acari associated with this family of rodents is 165, distributed in two superorders, four orders, 15 families, and 57 genera. Of the 15 families registered, the richest is Trombiculidae (70 nominal species and 75 taxa), followed by Laelapidae (39 and 42, respectively), Ixodidae (13 nominal and 16 taxa), and Leewenhoekiidae (13 nominal and taxa). From the bibliographic searches, a total of 76 papers were recovered with information on the association between Acari and cricetid rodents in Mexico. The main detected approach in the literature was taxonomic (75 works) and one on detection of pathogens. From the 145 known species of cricetids recorded in Mexico, only 72 (distributed in 18 genera) have been studied and found to host Acari. The use of regionalization of Mexico in provinces allowed us to map the records of Acari associated to cricetids in the most natural approximation of their distribution. We recognize and discuss seven factors that favor the scarcity and asymmetry of acarological studies in Mexico.

Arthropods Associated with Mammals. Their Importance as Part of the Richness in a Biosphere Reserve in Mexico.

The Chamela Biological Station (ChBS) is located in the Pacific Coast of Mexico in the State of Jalisco. This represents one of the core areas of the Chamela-Cuixmala Biosphere Reserve, characterized by one of the most threatened ecosystems, the tropical dry forest. Although accumulated knowledge of biological diversity, only few studies have been focused on ectoparasites or ectodytes associated with mammals, only 23 arthropod taxa had been recorded. In order to increase knowledge about arthropods associated with Mexican mammals, the objective of this work was to record the richness of arthropods (mites, ticks, lice, and fleas) associated with small and medium-sized mammals in the ChBS. A total of 81 hosts belonging to four orders, six families and nine species were captured. From these hosts, 4,946 arthropods were recovered: 4,007 mites, 673 ticks, 230 lice, and 36 fleas. Among medium-sized mammals, Nasua narica (L.) and Didelphis virginiana Kerr showed the highest levels of richness, with six arthropod taxa; among rodents, Heteromys pictus (Thomas) had the highest number of associated species (five). Within the 22 arthropod taxa registered in the present work, 12 represent new records for the reserve, and 3 represent new records for Mexico. With this study, the arthropod fauna associated with mammals in the ChBS has been raised to 38 taxa. In terms of biological conservation, knowledge of the species that inhabit natural reserves must be a priority, since this represents the baseline for species protected, not only in Mexico but around the world.