Evaluation of Trombidioid (Acari: Parasitengona) Larval Exuviae And Its Importance In Diagnosis

The larva of trombidioid which parasitic on host separates from host after enough feeding and pass to protonymph (inactive) stage, then it passes to deutonymph stage by leaving larva skin (exuviae). In this study, the parasitic larvae, which were collected from host and deutonymphs, which obtained from other larvae on host, were identified as the same species. This identification was achieved by the comparison of larvae and exuviae that has been released while passing deutonymph stage. With this method, three mite species, Allothrombium sp., Trichotrombidium muscarum (Riley, 1878), Trombidium holosericeum (Linnaeus, 1758) were diagnosed from samples collected from one harvestmen (Opilionida) and two fly (Diptera) species (Rhagio sp., Musca domestica). At the same time, it was determined that larval skins, observed in previous studies but not emphasized to date, showed the same characteristics as the larvae and could be used in morphological diagnosis.