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Host–habitat relations as an important determinant of spatial distribution of flea assemblages (Siphonaptera) on rodents in the Negev Desert

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 February 1997

B. R. KRASNOV
Affiliation:
Ramon Science Center, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, P.O. Box 194, Mizpe Ramon 80600, Israel
G. I. SHENBROT
Affiliation:
Ramon Science Center, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, P.O. Box 194, Mizpe Ramon 80600, Israel
S. G. MEDVEDEV
Affiliation:
Zoological Institute, Russian Academy of Science, 199034, Saint-Petersburg, Russia
V. S. VATSCHENOK
Affiliation:
Zoological Institute, Russian Academy of Science, 199034, Saint-Petersburg, Russia
I. S. KHOKHLOVA
Affiliation:
Desert Animal Adaptations and Husbandry, Jacob Blaustein Institute for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 84105, Israel
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Abstract

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We studied flea assemblages on rodents in different habitats of the Ramon erosion cirque in the Negev Desert to examine whether host–habitat relations influence flea spatial distribution. Eleven flea species parasitizing 12 rodent species were recorded. There was significant positive relationship between flea species richness and body mass of the host species; no relationships were found between relative richness of flea assemblage and either the number of habitats occupied by the host species or the size of host geographical range. The differences in pattern of flea parasitism among habitat types within host species were determined by both environmental features of a habitat and the specific pattern of habitat use by rodents. There was replacement of Xenopsylla conformis by Xenopsylla ramesis on Meriones crassus and Gerbillus dasyurus among different habitats. The results of ordination of the flea collections from each individual host demonstrated that the flea assemblages were segregated mainly along 4 axes, which explained 86% of total variance. Each of the ordination axes corresponded with a change in flea species composition. The directions of these changes were (1) among-hosts within a habitat and (2) among-habitats within a host.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
© 1997 Cambridge University Press