Ectoparasites, Bots, and Vector-Borne Diseases Associated with the Golden Mouse

Golden mice, Ochrotomys nuttalli, are integral ecological components of woodlands in the southeastern United States and some adjacent regions, as suggested by the chapters in this volume and by publications describing the natural history and ecological relationships of this small mammal species (e.g., Christopher and Barrett 2006, Goodpaster and Hoffmeister 1954, Linzey 1968, Linzey and Packard 1977, McCarley 1958, Morzillo et al. 2003). Ecological relationships of golden mice extend to the symbiotes, including their parasitic arthropods (ectoparasites and the larvae of botflies), other epifaunistic arthropods, and microorganisms that may be transmitted by certain ectoparasites. Microorganisms could either be pathogenic or nonpathogenic to golden mice. In either case, microorganisms could cause pathology in humans resulting in zoonotic vector-borne diseases. Under these relationships, golden mice would be the reservoir hosts and arthropods, such as ticks, would be the zoonotic vectors. In this chapter, an ecological approach will be taken with respect to analyzing the ectoparasites (and phoretic arthropods) that inhabit the fur of golden mice, the bots that cause subcutaneous parasitism in this rodent, and, finally, the relationship between golden mouse ectoparasites and vector-borne diseases, including those that cause clinical disease in humans (i.e., zoonoses).