A search for a universal pattern of infestation of Demodecidae skin mites in murid hosts, exemplified by the description of a new species of the genus Demodex (Acariformes: Demodecidae) in the Polynesian rat Rattus exulans
Issued Date
2026-01-01
Resource Type
eISSN
24750263
Scopus ID
2-s2.0-105031653543
Journal Title
European Zoological Journal
Volume
93
Issue
1
Start Page
375
End Page
389
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SCOPUS
Bibliographic Citation
European Zoological Journal Vol.93 No.1 (2026) , 375-389
Suggested Citation
Rolbiecki L., Izdebska J.N., Cierocka K., Ribas A., Morand S. A search for a universal pattern of infestation of Demodecidae skin mites in murid hosts, exemplified by the description of a new species of the genus Demodex (Acariformes: Demodecidae) in the Polynesian rat Rattus exulans. European Zoological Journal Vol.93 No.1 (2026) , 375-389. 389. doi:10.1080/24750263.2026.2621455 Retrieved from: https://repository.li.mahidol.ac.th/handle/123456789/115646
Title
A search for a universal pattern of infestation of Demodecidae skin mites in murid hosts, exemplified by the description of a new species of the genus Demodex (Acariformes: Demodecidae) in the Polynesian rat Rattus exulans
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Abstract
The Polynesian rat Rattus exulans is the third most common species of Rattus, after the cosmopolitan brown rat R. norvegicus and black rat R. rattus. However, despite its wide distribution and great natural and economic importance, its acarofauna is poorly known. It has been found to host a species of demodecid mite that is new to science, Demodex exulantis sp. nov. which occurred in various areas of the hairy skin of the body. Demodecidae occupying analogous locations and with similar morphological features are typical skin parasites in other Muridae of Eurasian origin, including host species of the genera Apodemus, Mus and Bandicota. However, no such mite has previously been identified in hosts of the genus Rattus. The present study confirms the universality of this pattern of skin colonization of this group of rodents, i.e. with the dominant mite species associated with the hairy skin of the entire body. The identified model of skin infestation by co-occurring/synhospital demodecid mites, with the dominant species inhabiting hair follicles, may be a universal pattern for Demodecidae colonizing all mammalian groups. The present discovery also constitutes the first record of Prostigmata skin mites in R. exulans, and we present a global checklist with an updated list of Demodecidae records in murids. http://www.zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:2CF24B22-4566-453C-9D42-F755DAA5778B https://zoobank.org/NomenclaturalActs/2cf24b22-4566-453c-9d42-f755daa5778b.