Colpocephalum sp. Chewing Lice (Psocodea: Menoponidae) Collected From Bald Eagles in Mississippi

Bald eagles, Haliaeetus leucocephalus L., are found throughout North America and are often seen in areas where fish (their preferred food) are abundant (Bildstein 2017, Raptors, Cornell Univ. Press, Ithaca, NY). Like other birds, bald eagles may be parasitized by a variety of ectoparasites including lice and mites (Price and Graham 1997, Chewing and Sucking Lice as Parasites of Mammals and Birds, USDA Tech. Bull. No. 1849, Washington, DC; Philips 2000, J. Raptor Res. 34:210–231). Chewing lice, along with the other parasitic lice, were formerly placed in the insect Order Phthiraptera, but now have been placed within nonparasitic bark lice and book lice in the Order Psocodea (Durden 2019, Lice, Pg. 79–104, G.R. Mullen and L.A. Durden [eds.], Lice, Medical and Veterinary Entomology, 3ed, Elsevier, New York). Five genera of chewing lice, particularly those in the family Menoponidae have been reported previously from bald eagles (Price and Beer 1963, Can. Entomol. 95:731–763; Price et al. 2003, Illinois Natural History Survey Special Publ. No. 24), but records from Mississippi are rare or nonexistent. Here, we report four specimens of Colpocephalum sp. collected from two bald eagles nesting near the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

On 8 March 2022, two male bald eagle nestlings were banded by the second author (SR) and his assistants at the Mississippi Sandhill Crane National Wildlife Refuge, Jackson Co., Mississippi, near Gautier (GPS coordinates: 30°27′30″N, –88°39′30″W). During the banding process, an estimated 15 lice were seen running across his fingers and arms; 4 were captured and placed in a vial of alcohol. At the laboratory, all four lice were removed from the alcohol, cleared in a 6.0% potassium hydroxide solution, and mounted on microscope slides for identification using a standard taxonomic key (Fig. 1) (Clay 1969, Bull. British Mus. Nat. Hist. Entomol. 24:3–26; Price et al 2003, Illinois Natural History Survey Special Publ. No. 24). In addition, photos of the specimens were sent to the third author (TAC) who confirmed that the lice were Colpocephalum sp., known to parasitize members of the Accipitriformes, including eagles, hawks, kites, and vultures (Catanach et al. 2018, Zool. Script. 47:72–83). These new records add to the body of occurrence of chewing lice parasites of bald eagles throughout their range. Vouchers of specimens described in this study have been deposited in the Mississippi Entomological Museum, Mississippi State University.

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