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#35: Lice


Litinsects #35: Lice

Today you’ll be learning about a rather hated group of insects: lice
 
  • Lice are wingless OBLIGATE ECTOPARASITES meaning that they need a host to complete their lifecycle and they live on the OUTSIDE of their host’s body (as opposed to ENDOparasites which live inside a host).
  • Lice belong to the order PHTHIRAPTERA (the PH is silent), which comes from the Greek “phtheir” meaning louse and “aptera” meaning wingless. Taxonomically, lice are actually grouped within the winged insects but lost their wings SECONDARILY due to their parasitic lifestyle
  • There are two subgroups of lice: CHEWING lice and SUCKING lice. Chewing lice are found mainly on birds and occasionally on mammals. Their mouthparts are built for biting and they feed on skin debris, feathers, hair, and skin secretions. Sucking lice have mouthparts adapted for piercing and sucking, which they use to suck blood from their hosts. They mainly live on mammals, including humans
  • Lice undergo incomplete metamorphosis, passing through multiple nymphal stages. Females produce a sticky substance to cement eggs (called nits) to hairs or feathers. Fun fact: the expression “nitpicking” comes from the act of removing nits from someone’s hair, which is a process that requires a lot of attention to detail
  • Almost every mammal species is host to at least one, if not more, species of lice however none have ever been found on platypuses, echidnas, pangolins, and whales...
  • That’s right! Lice can even infest aquatic animals, such as seals, walruses and penguins! This is possible because marine animals often trap a layer of air under their fur for insulation, which the lice can live off of
  • Most lice are highly HOST SPECIFIC and are sometimes only found in particular areas of the host’s body (humans host 3 different types: head, body, and pubic lice). Due to their parasitic lifestyle, lice have evolved flattened bodies, claws to cling to hair and fur, and many are eyeless or have reduced eyes
This specimen is a chewing louse that I found on a common swift. 
 
Quick poll: what is your level of grossed out-edness at lice before vs. after this post? 😆

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