Syringophilid Quill Mites Obey Harrison’s Rule
Harrison’s Rule (HR) postulates a positive allometry between host and parasite body sizes. We tested HR for Syringophilid quill mites parasitizing birds. Using host body mass and parasite body length as size indices, this pattern was absent in the Syringophilidae family and the Syringophilinae subfa...
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2024-08-01
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| author | Lajos Rózsa Mónika Ianculescu Martin Hromada |
| author_facet | Lajos Rózsa Mónika Ianculescu Martin Hromada |
| author_sort | Lajos Rózsa |
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| description | Harrison’s Rule (HR) postulates a positive allometry between host and parasite body sizes. We tested HR for Syringophilid quill mites parasitizing birds. Using host body mass and parasite body length as size indices, this pattern was absent in the Syringophilidae family and the Syringophilinae subfamily as a whole. However, when considering the parasite genera as units of study, as proposed originally by Harrison, we found that host body mass positively correlates with both male and female parasite body length in seven genera (<i>Aulobia</i>, <i>Aulonastus</i>, <i>Neoaulonastus</i>, <i>Picobia</i>, <i>Neopicobia</i>, <i>Syringophilopsis</i>, and <i>Torotrogla</i>). Most of these relationships were non-significant. On the contrary, male and female <i>Syringophiloidus</i> mites exhibited negative relationships with host mass (both non-significant). This apparent contradiction disappeared when we applied wing length as an index of host body size. Since species of this genus are specific to the host flight feathers (secondaries and also primaries), wing length is a more meaningful index of host body size than body mass. Overall, most cases corresponded to the positive direction predicted by Harrison when examined on the genus level. This finding also implies a surprising reliability of the genus concept, at least in this group of ectoparasites. |
| format | Article |
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| spelling | doaj-art-e04774c5965343f5b8fb983cdc7ea0d22025-08-20T01:55:22ZengMDPI AGDiversity1424-28182024-08-0116951610.3390/d16090516Syringophilid Quill Mites Obey Harrison’s RuleLajos Rózsa0Mónika Ianculescu1Martin Hromada2Institute of Evolution, HUN-REN Centre for Ecological Research, Konkoly-Thege Street 29-33, H-1121 Budapest, HungaryHungarian Department of Biology and Ecology, Babeș-Bolyai University, Clinicilor Str. 5-7, 400006 Cluj-Napoca, RomaniaLaboratory and Museum of Evolutionary Ecology, Department of Ecology, Faculty of Humanities and Natural Sciences, University of Presov, 080-01 Prešov, SlovakiaHarrison’s Rule (HR) postulates a positive allometry between host and parasite body sizes. We tested HR for Syringophilid quill mites parasitizing birds. Using host body mass and parasite body length as size indices, this pattern was absent in the Syringophilidae family and the Syringophilinae subfamily as a whole. However, when considering the parasite genera as units of study, as proposed originally by Harrison, we found that host body mass positively correlates with both male and female parasite body length in seven genera (<i>Aulobia</i>, <i>Aulonastus</i>, <i>Neoaulonastus</i>, <i>Picobia</i>, <i>Neopicobia</i>, <i>Syringophilopsis</i>, and <i>Torotrogla</i>). Most of these relationships were non-significant. On the contrary, male and female <i>Syringophiloidus</i> mites exhibited negative relationships with host mass (both non-significant). This apparent contradiction disappeared when we applied wing length as an index of host body size. Since species of this genus are specific to the host flight feathers (secondaries and also primaries), wing length is a more meaningful index of host body size than body mass. Overall, most cases corresponded to the positive direction predicted by Harrison when examined on the genus level. This finding also implies a surprising reliability of the genus concept, at least in this group of ectoparasites.https://www.mdpi.com/1424-2818/16/9/516Harrison’s ruleSyringophilidaecoevolutionary allometrybody sizegenus concept |
| spellingShingle | Lajos Rózsa Mónika Ianculescu Martin Hromada Syringophilid Quill Mites Obey Harrison’s Rule Diversity Harrison’s rule Syringophilidae coevolutionary allometry body size genus concept |
| title | Syringophilid Quill Mites Obey Harrison’s Rule |
| title_full | Syringophilid Quill Mites Obey Harrison’s Rule |
| title_fullStr | Syringophilid Quill Mites Obey Harrison’s Rule |
| title_full_unstemmed | Syringophilid Quill Mites Obey Harrison’s Rule |
| title_short | Syringophilid Quill Mites Obey Harrison’s Rule |
| title_sort | syringophilid quill mites obey harrison s rule |
| topic | Harrison’s rule Syringophilidae coevolutionary allometry body size genus concept |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1424-2818/16/9/516 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT lajosrozsa syringophilidquillmitesobeyharrisonsrule AT monikaianculescu syringophilidquillmitesobeyharrisonsrule AT martinhromada syringophilidquillmitesobeyharrisonsrule |