Ecological relationships between feather mites (Acari) and wild birds of Emberizidae (Aves) in a fragment of Atlantic Forest in northeastern Brazil

The objective of this study was to investigate feather mites on birds of the Family Emberizidae, to collect data on the ecological ectoparasite-host relationship and infestation level. A sum of 94 birds of 9 species was captured at the Refúgio Ecológico Charles Darwin, Igarassú, Pernambuco, Brazil, from August 1996 to July 1997. Five genera of mites from the superfamily Analgoidea were identified: Analges Nitzsch, 1818; Mesalgoides Gaud & Atyeo, 1967; Pterodectes Robin, 1877; Proctophyllodes Robin, 1877 and Trouessartia Canestrini, 1899. Among the 94 birds examined, 92 (97,87%) were infested. Regarding the prevalence, it was observed that the genera with higher percentage were, respectively, Pterodectes (88,04%), Proctophyllodes (56,52%) and Trouessartia (45,65%)