|
The moose throat bot fly Cephenemyia ulrichii larvae (Diptera: Oestridae) found developing in roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) for the first timeAbstract: Larvae of throat, or nose or pharyngeal, bot flies in the genus Cephenemyia (Diptera: Oestridae) are obligate parasites that inhabit the nasal cavity, pharynx and throat of cervids [1]. In Europe there are four known species: Cephenemyia trompe (Modeer) in reindeer Rangifer tarandus; Cephenemyia stimulator (Clark) in roe deer Capreolus capreolus; Cephenemyia auribarbis (Meigen) in red deer Cervus elaphus; and Cephenemyia ulrichii Brauer in moose or European elk Alces alces [1-4]. In Finland, Sweden and Norway only C. trompe and C. ulrichii have been reported [3], with the result that Cervus elaphus and Capreolus capreolus are generally not infested by throat bot flies in Fennoscandia (see also [5]). Even though the roe deer population has increased in Finland in the recent decades [6], throat bots have never been reported in roe deer in Fennoscandia.The moose throat bot fly C. ulrichii was first reported in Finland in 1910 and 1913 [7], and has subsequently become increasingly common in southern Finland [8,9]. In Sweden, C. ulrichii was first reported in 1988 [10], but has since increased its distribution [11]. In 1987, the species was reported for the first time in Norway (first instars in Pasvik in northeastern Norway) [3,4]. We here report a finding of moose throat bot fly larvae in roe deer.About 50 throat bot fly larvae were seen in an adult roe deer buck shot on 4 June 2007, in Kirkkonummi near Helsinki by the southern coast of Finland. The population consisted of different sized larvae, and three of the bigger ones were collected for laboratory examination. The other larvae were not collected.Before we could do a proper investigation of the larvae, we considered three species possible: 1) C. stimulator (of roe deer), 2) C. trompe (of reindeer), and 3) C. ulrichii (of moose). As mentioned, C. stimulator has never been found in Finland, whereas C. trompe is common in the northern Finland where there are domestic reindeer, and in the east and central Finland whe
|