Rositsa Davidova, Viktor Vasilev, Veselin Arnaudov and Maria Boycheva
Department of Plant Protection, Botany and Zoology, Faculty of Natural Science, Konstantin Preslavsky University of Shumen, 115 Universitetsca Str., 9700, Shumen, Bulgaria
*(e-mail : davidova_sh@yahoo.com; Mobile : 00359886658988)
(Received : August 18, 2020; Accepted : October 12, 2020)
ABSTRACT
The aim of the paper was to analyze the distribution of mite Dermanyssus gallinae, a haematophagous ectoparasite, in nests of semi-collared flycatcher (Ficedula semitorquata), great tit (Parus major) and eurasian blue tit (Cyanistes caeruleus). The research was conducted in the Kamchia Mountain (North-eastern Bulgaria), an area characterized by high concentration of birds with conservation significance. A total of 2483 specimens of D. gallinae were found in nests of birds. The species was present in 44.96% of investigated nests. The prevalence and abundance of D. gallinae demonstrated significant variability in the examined bird species during studied four years. In general, the species had the highest prevalence in the nests of F. semitorquata and the highest abundance in the nests of C. caeruleus. The species abundance was greatest in the nests of F. semitorquata in 2015 and in the nests of C. caeruleus in 2013. In the nests of P. major in all the studied years the species had constant and lower density.
Key words : : Mite, abundance, birds’ nests, annual dynamic