Saemundssonia (Saemundssonia) lari ( O. Fabricius, 1780 )

Al-Ahmed, Azzam, Shobrak, Mohammed & Nasser, D., 2014, Chewing lice (Phthiraptera: Amblycera, Ischnocera) from Red Sea gulls with new host-parasite records, Zootaxa 3790 (4), pp. 567-576 : 573

Saemundssonia (Saemundssonia) lari ( O. Fabricius, 1780)

( Figs 3 e,f, 4d)

Pediculus lari O. Fabricius, 1780: 219 .

Saemundssonia (Saemundssonia) lari ( O. Fabricius, 1780) ; Price et al. 2003: 234.

Type host. Larus hyperboreus Gunnerus, 1767 —Glaucous gull.

Material examined (n = 53). Ex Larus argentatus Pontoppidan, 1763: 2 ♂, 8♀, 3N, Umm Al-Malik Island, Red Sea (25º13'48''N, 37º8'37''E), 12 Nov. 2011.

Ex Ichthyaetus leucophthalmus (Temminck, 1825) : 5♂, 10♀, 5N, Jazan Fish Market (16o54'12''N, 42o32'40''E), 24 Nov. 2012.

Ex Larus armenicus Buturlin, 1934: 2 ♂, 7♀, Jazan Fish Market (16o 54' 9''N, 42o 32' 40''E), 23 Nov. 2012.

Ex Ichthyaetus hemprichii (Bruch, 1853) : 2♂, 4♀, Jeddah (21o24'56''N, 39o11'13''E), 25 Apr. 2013.

Ex Larus michahellis Naumann, 1840: 3 ♂, 1♀, 1N, Jazan Coast (16o56''22''N, 42o32'35''E), 12 Dec. 2013.

Species of Saemundssonia live primarily on the head and neck of the host. They are highly pigmented and are characterized by male genitalia, female subgenital plate and clypeal signature. Saemundssonia (S.) lari parasitises a great number of gull species ( Price et al. 2003: 234), and is distinguished from other Saemundssonia species by the male genitalia ( Fig. 4 d), as other characters may be confusing ( Palma 2000; 2012). These are the first records of S. (S.) lari from the Armenian ( Larus armenicus ) and the yellow-legged gulls ( Larus michahellis ).

Figures

FIGURE 3. a, male Actornithophilus piceus lari; b, male Austromenopon transversum; c, male Quadraceps punctatus clayae; d, male Quadraceps punctatus regressus; e, male Saemundssonia lari; f, female Saemundssonia lari.

FIGURE 4. a, male genitalia Actornithophilus piceus lari; b, prothorax Austromenopon transversum; c, male genitalia Quadraceps punctatus; d, male genitalia Saemundssonia lari. Prothorax pigmentation: e, Quadraceps punctatus pallidus; f, Quadraceps punctatus clayae; g, Quadraceps punctatus regressus.