DISTRIBUTION OF FLEAS (SIPHONAPTERA) PARASITIZING
ON SMALL MAMMALS IN WEST SIBERIA
Sapegina V.F.
Institute Sistematics and Ecology of Animals Siberian Branch of the
Russian Academy of Sciences, 11 Frunze str. Novosibirsk, 630091, Russia
Fax: (3832) 170973, e-mail: zm@eco.nsc.ru
To whom correspondence should be addressed:
9 Pravda str., app. 30, Novosibirsk, 630090, Russia
Key words
Fleas, small mammals, species, altitude belts, zones, subzones, index of abundance.
Abstract
The landscape distribution of fleas parasitizing on small mammals, theirs index of
abundance, number of fleas per unit hosts census – per 100 cylinder-days (c-d) in plain
part of West Siberia and in mountains of northern-eastern Altai were analyzed.
Development of fleas occurs in nests and burrows of small mammals. In general,
distribution of fleas depends on distribution of theirs hosts as well as climatic
conditions. In the plain part of West Siberia the highest fleas’s index per unit of hosts
was registered in middle and southern taiga but diminishes of heat supply to northwards
and aridization augments southwards this index decreased. In mountains of north-east
Altai the highest abundance of fleas per 100 c-d was found in aspen-fir and cedar-fir
forests (chern) low hills. This index decreased almost in three times to - wards foothill’s
and midmountain’s areas.
Introduction
Fleas are vectors of the plague’s microbe and many other pathogens of transmissive
diseases. Simultaneous parasitizing on one host by fleas of different species and
changing hosts enables the exchange of pathogens. Fleas also take part in rising and
supporting of the natural foci of infections. The purpose of this investigation in to
generalize and to analyze the regional distribution and abundance of fleas of small
mammals in the mountains and on the plains. On the plain researches were conducted in
the tundra of Gydan Peninsula, in northern, middle and southern taiga, in sub-taiga
forests, in forest-steppe and in steppe of West Siberia.
In the northern-eastern Altai - in the forest-steppe foothills, that changed by coniferous
– leaved and small-leaved forests and then by aspen-fir and cedar-fir and small-leaves
forests low hills and then dark-coniferous forests middle hills and high-altitude belt of
Alpine and Sub-Alpine meadows with sparse dwarf birches and with shrub and rocky
tundra.
Materials and methods
The collection and indefication of fleas was made using the generally accepted methods
(Ioff, Scalon, 1954). On the plain and in mountains fleas was collected from animals
trapped in the grooves with trapping cylinders or trapping cones. In the Gydan
Peninsula and in bogs the trapping cones were put near the fences made of polyethylene
film. Animals were collected from cylinders and cones into individual little bags of
white fabric early in the morning. Most animals remained alive in cylinders and cones
and so they have more fleas than dead animals. So this method is better then the use of
mouse snap traps, in which animals usually die. So for the zoogeographical analysis of
the fleas distribution we collected fleas from animals, trapped in the groves with
trapping cylinders or cones. We used the index of abundance calculated as the number
of fleas per one of animal and the number of fleas per unit host census-per 100 cylinderdays (c-d). 44 species of fleas were recorded on small mammals in West Siberia.
Results
In northern-eastern Altai on small mammals were recorded 29 of fleas species. The
highest biodiversity of fleas species and number of fleas on 100 c-d were recorded in
cherneviye low hills (table 1).
Table 1
Distribution of the fleas on the small mammals in the different landscapes
of northern-eastern Altai
Altitude belts
The forest-steppe altitude belt
Coniferous-leaved and smallleaved forests of low hills
Chern of low hills
Small-leaved forests of low
hills
Dark-coniferous forests of
middles hills
Fir-cedar of sparse forests of
middles hills
Shrub and rocky tundra of
high mountains
1315
Number
of
animals
100 c-d*
40
11
Index
abundance of
fleas
1.3
4128
86
15
0.7
60.2
4371
198
19
0.8
158.4
163
110
8
0.5
55.0
837
98
15
0.5
49.0
110
105
12
0.5
52.0
25
—
3
0.3
—
Number
of small
animals
Number
of fleas
species
Fleas on
100 c-d
52.0
This index decreased towards foothills and midmountain areas. However the highest
index of abundance of fleas on small mammals are found in forest-steppe, but higher in
the mountains this value diminished. This can be explained by occurrence of the foreststeppe species Ctenophtalmus. assimilis Tasch. which is dominant. Six species of fleas
were dominant in northern-eastern Altai. The following species were dominant in
particular altitude belts: Ct. Assimilis in the forest-steppe altitude belt, Rhadinopsylla
altaica Wagn. in fir-cedar of sparse forests of middle hills, Hystrichopsylla talpae
Curtis in forests of low hills, Megabothris rectangulatus Wahlgren – everywhere except
of sparse forests of middle hills and tundra, Palaeopsylla soricis starki Wagn. - there
and fir-cedar of sparse forests of middle hills, Amalaraeus penicilliger Gruble – from of
chern of low hills to tundra, where was only of fleas species. In the plain part of West
Siberia were recorded 37 fleas species on small mammals. It was established that the
number of flea species on small mammals in various landscape zones and subzones
almost in the whole territory on the plain part of West Siberian varied from 14 to 21.
Only in subarctic tundra their number was considerably smaller, only 5 species
(table 2).
Table 2
*This of figures take from the article I.V. Lukyanova (1980).
Distribution of fleas on the small mammals in the different zones and subzones in
the plain of West Siberia (1966-1984)
Zones and
subzones
Subarctic tundra
Northern taiga
Middle taiga
Southern taiga
Subtaiga forests
Forest-steppe
Steppe
Number of
animals
483
625
453
3066
248
4247
333
Number of
animals on
100 c-d
12.4
24.0
52.0
81.0
52.0
23.0
16.0
Number of
fleas species
5
15
16
20
14
21
14
Index
abundance
0.06
2.6
2.2
1.5
1.3
2.9
0.5
Fleas on
100 c-d
0.7
62.4
114.4
121.5
67.6
66.7
8.0
In the plain part of West Siberia the highest flea index per 100 c-d was observed in
middle and southern taiga. It decreased southwards and northwards from these zones, in
northern taiga, subtaiga forests, and forest-steppe, reaching the minimal values in
subarctic tundra and steppe. Eight species of fleas were dominant on the plain. The
following species were dominant: Amphipsylla sibirica sibirica Wagn. in the subarctic
tundra, Amalaraens dissimilis Jordan – in northern taiga, Doratopsylla dasycnema
Rotsh. and P. starki – in southern taiga, A. penicilliger and Ct. assimilis in forest-steppe,
Pectiuoctenus pavlovskii Ioff and Ct. arvalis Wagn. – in steppe, Peromyscopsylla
silvatica Meinert – in northern and southern taiga, Corrodopsylla birulai Ioff – in
northern and middle taiga, subtaiga forests and forest-steppe, M. rectangulatus –
everywhere except subtaiga forests and steppe.
Thus, distribution of fleas parasitizing on small mammals depends on distribution of
theirs hosts and climatic conditions. The highest fleas’ index on 100 c-d was registered
in the plain in middle southern taiga but diminishes of heat supply to northwards and
aridization augments southwards this index decreased. In mountains the highest index
on 100 c-d was found in chern of low hills. This index decreased towards foothills and
midmountain areas. Variations of abundance of fleas are influenced principally by
altitude belts.
Literature
Ioff I.G., Scalon O.I. (1954) Handbook for the identification of fleas of Eastern Siberia,
the Far East and adjacent regions. M. 275 p.
Lucjanova I.V. (1980) Quantitive characteristic of populations of small mammals in
northern-eastern Altai. Problems of zoogeography and histiry of fauna. P.255-273.
Yudin B.S. (1980) Zone and landscape groups of small mammals (Micromammalia) of
Taimyr. Fauna and Ecology of vertebrates of Siberia. P.5-31.
*The data on distribution of small mammal were kindly provided by Yu.S.Ravkin only
subarctic tundra take from the article B.S.Yudin (1980).