MOSQUITOES AS A TRANSPORT HOST FOR DUST MITES

For the first time, as part of the sanitary and epidemiological surveillance of the spread of vector-borne diseases dangerous to humans and animals, a monitoring program has been launched in the Perm Region to study blood-sucking insects. The purpose of this research was a parasitological examination of blood-sucking insects in the Perm urban area. A total of 102 mosquito specimens collected from early September to late November 2024 were analyzed. Two mosquito genera were identified: 93 specimens of Culex sp. Linnaeus, 1758 (2 males and 91 females) and 9 specimens of Aedes sp. Meigen, 1818 (7 males and 2 females). A partial parasitological dissection revealed no helminth larvae in any of the specimens. However, phoretic dust mites of the genus Suidasia sp. Oudemans, 1905 (Astigmata: Analgoidea: Suidasiidae) were found on the legs of four Culex sp. females (4.40%) (a total of 15 mites). One insect had simultaneously 1 to 11 mites, with an average of 3.75 specimens. These mites are not parasites but use mosquitoes as a transport means, a phoretic host.