The identity of Menacanthus eisenachensis Balát (Insecta, Phthiraptera, Amblycera, Menoponidae) from the Reed Warbler (Passeriformes, Sylviidae)

Abstract

Three hundred and thirty-one Reed Warblers Acrocephalus scirpaceus (Hermann) were examined for chewing lice (Phthiraptera). Twenty-eight (8.5%) were parasitized with Menacanthus curuccae (Schrank, 1776). Mean intensity of infestation was 4.3 lice. Hence, the name Menacanthus eisenachensis Balát, 1981, currently applied to Menacanthus lice parasitizing Reed Warblers, is placed as a junior synonym of M. curuccae, with Reed Warbler as a new host for the latter species. © 2008 Versita Warsaw and Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.