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Article: First record of Swainson's Warbler parasitism by Protocalliphora blow fly larvae.(SHORT COMMUNICATIONS)
- Article from:
- Wilson Bulletin
- Article date:
- June 1, 2005
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2005 Wilson Ornithological Society. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Swainson's Warbler (Limnothlypis swainsonii) is one of North America's most secretive avian species, and little is known about many aspects of its biology, including parasites and disease (Brown and Dickson 1994). Here, we present the first information regarding parasitism by Protocalliphora blow flies in this species. Larvae of Protocalliphora (Diptera: Calliphoridae) are obligate hematophagous parasites that reside in the nests of birds with nidicolous young. To feed, larvae of most species attach intermittently to the nestlings. Effects of this parasite on their avian hosts range from little or none (e.g., Miller and Fair 1997) to reduced hematocrit and hemoglobin ...