Comparisons of ectoparasites of urban and wild mesomammals in north-central Florida

Wildlife are hosts of ectoparasites that may transmit pathogens to humans and other animals. Urbanization may result in changes in the ecology of wildlife-associated ectoparasites and vector-borne disease. This research investigated ectoparasite communities of sylvatic and urban wild mesomammals captured during eight trapping sessions across four seasons at a rural, forested research station and within the city of Gainesville, FL. To date, ectoparasites have been identified from seven sylvatic and four urban trapping sessions. Preliminary redundancy analyses within sylvatic/urban settings by trapping session indicated a significant effect of host species and trapping session on ectoparasite communities. In the sylvatic setting, host species explained ~20% of ectoparasite community variation, while trapping session explained ~23%. In urban settings, host species explained ~32% of ectoparasite community variation, while trapping session explained ~16%. Three genera of ticks and three species of fleas were collected from raccoons and opossums, lice were collected only from raccoons, and mites were collected only from opossums. Few ticks or mites were collected from urban animals. From sylvatic animals, ticks, lice and mites were collected primarily in late spring and late fall. Fleas were collected in the summer. From urban animals, fleas were collected primarily in late fall and winter, while lice were distributed throughout the year. Preliminary kernel density estimates using total ectoparasite numbers per animal indicated seasonal changes in estimated ectoparasite densities, and that ectoparasite densities differed from animal capture densities in the study area. Additional multivariate analyses will be conducted to compare sylvatic and urban ectoparasite communities.