Host and parasite life history interplay to yield divergent population genetic structures in two ectoparasites living on the same bat species

Host–parasite interactions are ubiquitous in nature. However, how parasite population genetic structure is shaped by the interaction between host and parasite life history remains understudied. Studies comparing multiple parasites infecting a single host can be used to investigate how different parasite life history traits interplay with host behaviour and life history. In this study, we used 10 newly developed microsatellite loci to investigate the genetic structure of a parasitic bat fly (Basilia nana). Its host, the Bechstein's bat (Myotis bechsteinii), has a social system and roosting behaviour that restrict opportunities for parasite transmission. We compared fly genetic structure to that of the host and another parasite, the wing-mite, Spinturnix bechsteini. We found little spatial or temporal genetic structure in B. nana, suggesting a large, stable population with frequent genetic exchange between fly populations from different bat colonies. This contrasts sharply with the geneti...

宿主-寄生虫相互作用在自然界中无处不在。然而，宿主与寄生虫生活史之间的相互作用如何塑造寄生虫种群遗传结构，这一问题仍有待深入研究。通过比较感染同一宿主的多种寄生虫，可用于探究不同寄生虫生活史特征如何与宿主行为及生活史相互作用。本研究利用10个新开发的微卫星位点（microsatellite loci），对寄生蝙蝠蝇（Basilia nana）的遗传结构进行了分析。其宿主贝氏鼠耳蝠（Myotis bechsteinii）的社会系统与栖息行为限制了寄生虫的传播机会。我们将该蝇类的遗传结构与宿主，以及另一种寄生虫——翼螨Spinturnix bechsteini的遗传结构进行了对比。研究发现，B. nana几乎不存在空间或时间尺度上的遗传结构，这表明其种群规模庞大且稳定，不同蝙蝠群体间的蝇类种群存在频繁的遗传交流。这与……的遗传学特征形成了鲜明对比。