Primicimex

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Preserved specimen of an adult female Primicimex cavernis. Photo licensed under CC0 1.0 Female Primicimex Specimen.png
Preserved specimen of an adult female Primicimex cavernis. Photo licensed under CC0 1.0

Primicimex
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hemiptera
Suborder: Heteroptera
Family: Cimicidae
Genus: Primicimex
Barber, 1941
Species:
P. cavernis
Binomial name
Primicimex cavernis
Barber, 1941
Synonyms
  • Primicimex caverna Barber, 1941

Primicimex is a monotypic genus of ectoparasitic bed bugs in the family Cimicidae, the only species being Primicimex cavernis, [1] [2] [3] which is both the largest cimicid, and the most primitive one. It feeds on bats and was described from Ney Cave in Medina County, Texas but has since been found in four other caves in Guatemala, Mexico and southern US [4]

Contents

Description

Like all cimicids, Primicimex cavernis is flat and oval-shaped, becoming plumper after feeding. It is unable to fly and has beak-like mouthparts with which it pierces the skin and sucks the blood of its host. [5] It differs from other cimicids (except Bucimex chilensis) in having claws and a row of erect, peg-like spines on the tarsus and has been observed using these structures to cling onto the bat's pelage. [6]

Ecology

Primicimex cavernis and its nearest relative, Bucimex chilensis , are the only members of the cimicid subfamily Primicimicinae. Their hosts are exclusively bats; in the case of P. cavernis, this is the Mexican free-tailed bat (Tadarida brasiliensis), although the ghost-faced bat (Mormoops megalophylla), which roosts in the same cave, may act as a secondary host. [6] Ney Cave is a limestone cave in semiarid savannah grassland with oak (Quercus), mesquite (Prosopis) and grasses. The cave is a seasonal roost used by the bats as nursery quarters, and at dusk during the summer, upward of 400,000 bats may stream out of the cave entrance to forage for insects, returning to the roost before dawn. The young are mostly born in June and remain in the roost until able to fly, at about 40 days of age. [7] Cimicids have the ability to survive for long periods without feeding, and this allows Primicimex cavernis to hide in crevices, awaiting the return of their hosts from their over-wintering sites. [6]

Like other cimicids, Primicimex cavernis feeds exclusively on blood. It also performs traumatic insemination with the sperm being injected through the body wall but it is exceptional within the family in that at the injection site females do not possess a special female organ called the spermalege [8]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hemiptera</span> Order of insects often called true bugs

Hemiptera is an order of insects, commonly called true bugs, comprising over 80,000 species within groups such as the cicadas, aphids, planthoppers, leafhoppers, assassin bugs, bed bugs, and shield bugs. They range in size from 1 mm (0.04 in) to around 15 cm (6 in), and share a common arrangement of piercing-sucking mouthparts. The name "true bugs" is often limited to the suborder Heteroptera.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mexican free-tailed bat</span> Species of mammal (Tadarida brasiliensis)

The Mexican free-tailed bat or Brazilian free-tailed bat is a medium-sized bat native to the Americas, so named because its tail can be almost half its total length and is not attached to its uropatagium. It has been claimed to have the fastest horizontal speed of any animal, reaching top ground speeds over 99 mph (160 km/h). It also flies the highest among bats, at altitudes around 3,300 m (10,800 ft).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bed bug</span> Type of insect that feeds on human blood

Bed bugs are insects from the genus Cimex that feed on blood, usually at night. Their bites can result in a number of health impacts including skin rashes, psychological effects, and allergic symptoms. Bed bug bites may lead to skin changes ranging from small areas of redness to prominent blisters. Symptoms may take between minutes to days to appear and itchiness is generally present. Some individuals may feel tired or have a fever. Typically, uncovered areas of the body are affected. Their bites are not known to transmit any infectious disease. Complications may rarely include areas of dead skin or vasculitis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cimicidae</span> Family of parasitic blood-feeding insects

The Cimicidae are a family of small parasitic bugs that feed exclusively on the blood of warm-blooded animals. They are called cimicids or, loosely, bed bugs, though the latter term properly refers to the most famous member of the family, Cimex lectularius, the common bed bug and its tropical relation Cimex hemipterus. The family contains over 100 species. Cimicids appeared in the fossil record in the Cretaceous period. When bats evolved in the Eocene, they switched hosts and now feed mainly on bats or birds. Members of the group have colonised humans on three occasions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cimicomorpha</span> Order of true bugs

The Cimicomorpha are an infraorder of insects in the order Hemiptera, the true bugs. The rostrum and other morphology of all members apparently is adapted to feeding on animals as their prey or hosts. Members include bed bugs, bat bugs, assassin bugs, and pirate bugs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pentatomomorpha</span> Infraorder of true bugs

The Pentatomomorpha comprise an infraorder of insects in the true bug order Hemiptera. It unites such animals as the stink bugs (Pentatomidae), flat bugs (Aradidae), seed bugs, etc. They are closely related to the Cimicomorpha.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lygaeoidea</span> Superfamily of true bugs

The Lygaeoidea are a sizeable superfamily of true bugs, containing seed bugs and allies, in the order Hemiptera. There are about 16 families and more than 4,600 described species in Lygaeoidea, found worldwide. Most feed on seeds or sap, but a few are predators.

Bat bugs are parasitic blood-sucking insects that feed primarily on the blood of bats – their hosts. The name has been applied to members of the family Cimicidae and also to members of the family Polyctenidae. Bat bugs are closely related to bed bugs, and are so similar in appearance that they are often mistaken for bed bugs. Microscopic examination is needed to distinguish them. Bat bugs will also bite humans if given the opportunity. Bat bug species include:

Cimex pilosellus, known generally as the bat bug or western bat bug, is a species of bed bug in the family Cimicidae. It is found in North America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lygaeidae</span> Family of true bugs

The Lygaeidae are a family in the Hemiptera, with more than 110 genera in four subfamilies. The family is commonly referred to as seed bugs, and less commonly, milkweed bugs, or ground bugs. However, while many of the species feed on seeds, some feed on sap (mucivory) or seed pods, others are omnivores and a few, such as the wekiu bug, are carnivores that feed exclusively on insects. Insects in this family are distributed across the world. The family was vastly larger, but numerous former subfamilies have been removed and given independent family status, including the Artheneidae, Blissidae, Cryptorhamphidae, Cymidae, Geocoridae, Heterogastridae, Ninidae, Oxycarenidae and Rhyparochromidae, which together constituted well over half of the former family.

<i>Cimex</i> Genus of true bugs

Cimex is a genus of insects in the family Cimicidae. Cimex species are ectoparasites that typically feed on the blood of birds and mammals. Two species, Cimex lectularius and Cimex hemipterus, are known as bed bugs and frequently feed on humans, although other species may parasitize humans opportunistically. Species that primarily parasitize bats are known as bat bugs.

The spermalege is a special-purpose organ found in female bed bugs that appears to have evolved to mitigate the effects of traumatic insemination. The spermalege has two embryologically distinct parts, known as the ectospermalege and mesospermalege. The evolution of the spermalege as a female counter-adaptation for traumatic insemination was proposed by the French entomologist Jacques Carayon in 1966.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Polyctenidae</span> Family of true bugs

The Polyctenidae are a rarely collected family of parasitic bugs of the superfamily Cimicoidea. Polyctenidae species or bat bugs are obligate, hematophagous ectoparasites of bats. These insects are not to be confused with cimicid bat bugs, which are members of the family Cimicidae. A significant relationship appears to occur between the family groups and the species of hosts that indicates co-evolution and specialization.

Oeciacus vicarius, known generally as the American swallow bug or cliff swallow bug, is a species of bed bug in the family Cimicidae. It is found in North America. The bug is a blood-feeding ectoparasite of the colonially nesting American cliff swallow and vector of Buggy Creek Virus.

Oeciacus is a genus of bed bugs in the family Cimicidae. There are at least three described species in Oeciacus.

Cimexopsis is a genus of bed bugs in the family Cimicidae. There is one described species in Cimexopsis, C. nyctalis.

Cimex adjunctus, is an ectoparasite found in a wide range of North America. Like other insects in the genus Cimex, C. adjunctus is a temporary parasite that eats blood. Temporary, meaning that they do not linger on their hosts between meals. C. adjunctus feed off of many insectivorous bat species. On more than one occasion, these insects have been found on the wings of Eptesicus fuscus.

Hesperocimex is a genus of bed bugs in the family Cimicidae. There are at least two described species in Hesperocimex.

<i>Cimex hemipterus</i> Species of true bug

Cimex hemipterus, known as the tropical bed bug, is a species of bed bugs within the Cimicidae family that primarily resides in tropical climates. However, it has been reported that this species can live in more temperate climates along with the closely related bed bug species C. lectularius.C. hemipterus is a hematophagous, obligate parasite of humans. This means that it requires blood meals from their human hosts in order to survive. When bitten, humans experience itchiness, wheals, and lesions around the affected areas on the skin. This species typically resides in human domiciles within cracks, crevices, or mattresses, and are more prevalent in developing countries. Like other bed bugs, C. hemipterus is primarily active during the night time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Giant mesquite bug</span> Species of insect

The giant mesquite bug is an insect of the order Hemiptera, or the "true bugs". As a member of the family Coreidae, it is a leaf-footed bug. As the common name implies, it is a large bug that feeds on mesquite trees of the American Southwest and Northwestern Mexico.

References

  1. "Primicimex Report". Integrated Taxonomic Information System . Retrieved 2019-09-24.
  2. "Primicimex". GBIF . Retrieved 2019-09-24.
  3. Usinger, Robert Leslie (1966). Monograph of Cimicidae (Hemiptera, Heteroptera) (PDF). Entomological Society of America. pp. 294–295. (39 MB)
  4. Jones, Susan C. & Jordan, Kyle K. "Bat Bugs" (PDF). Ohio State University Extension Fact Sheet. Ohio State University. Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 March 2017. Retrieved 15 February 2020.
  5. 1 2 3 Ossa, Gonzalo; Johnson, Joseph S.; Puisto, Anna I. E.; Rinne, Veikko; Sääksjärvi, Ilari E.; Waag, Austin; Vesterinen, Eero J. & Lilley, Thomas M. (February 2019). "The Klingon batbugs: Morphological adaptations in the primitive bat bugs, Bucimex chilensis and Primicimex cavernis, including updated phylogeny of Cimicidae". Ecology and Evolution. 9 (4): 1736–1749. doi:10.1002/ece3.4846. PMC   6392402 . PMID   30847069.
  6. Reichard, Jonathan D.; Gonzales, Lauren E.; Casey, Caitlin M.; Allen, Louise C.; Hristov, Nickolay I. & Kunz, Thomas H. (2009). "Evening emergence behavior and seasonal dynamics in large colonies of Brazilian free-tailed bats". Journal of Mammalogy. 90 (6): 1478–1486. doi: 10.1644/08-MAMM-A-266R1.1 .
  7. Reinhardt, Klaus & Siva-Jothy, Michael T. (Jan 2007). "Biology of the bed bugs (Cimicidae)" (PDF). Annual Review of Entomology . 52: 351–374. doi:10.1146/annurev.ento.52.040306.133913. PMID   16968204. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 July 2011. Retrieved 26 May 2010.

Further reading