Araeopsylla martialis (Rothschild, 1903)

Hastriter, Michael W., 2016, Description of two new species of bat fleas of the genus Araeopsylla (Siphonaptera) from Kenya and Madagascar with notes on miscellaneous bat fleas, ZooKeys 572, pp. 7-21 : 13

Taxon classification Animalia Siphonaptera Ischnopsyllidae

Araeopsylla martialis (Rothschild, 1903)

Ceratophyllus martialis Rothschild, 1903

Ischnopsyllus martialis Rothschild, 1906: 187-188

Araeopsylla martialis Jordan & Rothschild, 1921: 146; Hopkins and Rothschild 1956: 323-325; Lumaret 1962: 12; Klein and Uilenberg 1966: 53; Beaucournu and Fain 1983: 458, 460, 465; Beaucournu and Fontenille 1993: 79; Lewis 2006: 44: Marcus 1961: 190.

Remarks.

Although Araeopsylla is generally collected only in very small numbers across its range, Araeopsylla martialis is exceptional. Sixty-seven individual Mormopterus jugularis specimens yielded one or more specimens of Araeopsylla martialis . These were collected in three provinces of Madagascar (Fianarantosa, Toamasina, and Toliara). A total of 158 (64♂, 94♀) specimens were harvested from the 67 specimens of Mormopterus jugularis , yielding a flea intensity of 2.4. One male specimen of Araeopsylla martialis was collected from Rousettus madagascarensis . Other species of bats did not harbor Araeopsylla martialis . Its occurrence on a Rousettus sp. is likely an accidental association.

Material examined

(BYUC). Madagascar, Fianarantsoa Province: Fianarantsoa église FLM (21°27'32"S, 47°04'36"E), 1190 m, Mormopterus jugularis ♂, 18 XI 2004, FHR, 1♂, 1♀.