Psoroptes
| Psoroptes | |
|---|---|
| |
| Psoroptes cuniculi | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Chelicerata |
| Class: | Arachnida |
| Order: | Sarcoptiformes |
| Family: | Psoroptidae |
| Genus: | Psoroptes Gervais, 1841 |
| Species: | P. equi
|
| Binomial name | |
| Psoroptes equi (Hering, 1838)
| |
| Synonyms | |
| |
Psoroptes is a genus of mites, including the agents that cause psoroptic mange.
Psoroptic mange
[edit]Psoroptes mites are responsible for causing psoroptic mange in various animals, leading to economic losses among farmers of cattle, sheep and goats.[1] It is also known as sheep scab and cattle scab.[1] The disease is highly infectious, and is transmitted via fenceposts and other structures that livestock use when scratching themselves.[1] The mites have mouthparts which do not pierce the skin, but are adapted to feeding on the surface, where the mites abrade the stratum corneum.[1] See Mites of livestock for photographs of infestations by Psoroptes.
Taxonomy
[edit]Psoroptes has been traditionally considered to include five species living on different host species, but genetic analysis has reduced the genus to a single species, Psoroptes ovis.[2]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d Gary Mullen & Barry M. OConnor (2009). "Mites (Acari)". In Gary Mullen & Lance Durden (eds.). Medical and Veterinary Entomology (2nd ed.). Academic Press. pp. 423–482. ISBN 978-0-12-372500-4.
- ^ Iowa State University (2009). "Sheep scab" (PDF).
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External links
[edit]- van Praag, Esther. "Ear mite: Psoroptes cuniculi".