Oryzomys is a genus of semiaquatic rodents in the tribe Oryzomyini living in southern North America and far northern South America. It includes eight species, two of which—the marsh rice rat (O. palustris) of the United States and O. couesi of Mexico and Central America—are widespread; the six others have more restricted distributions. The species have had eventful taxonomic histories, and most species were at one time included in the marsh rice rat; additional species may be recognized in the future. The name Oryzomys was established in 1857 by Spencer Fullerton Baird for the marsh rice rat and was soon applied to over a hundred species of American rodents. Subsequently, the genus gradually became more narrowly defined until its current contents were established in 2006, when ten new genera were established for species previously placed in Oryzomys.
The marsh rice rat is a semiaquatic North American rodent in the family Cricetidae. It usually occurs in wetland habitats, such as swamps and salt marshes. It is found mostly in the eastern and southern United States, from New Jersey and Kansas south to Florida and northeasternmost Tamaulipas, Mexico; its range previously extended further west and north, where it may have been a commensal in corn-cultivating communities. Weighing about 40 to 80 g, the marsh rice rat is a medium-sized rodent that resembles the common black and brown rat. The upperparts are generally gray-brown, but are reddish in many Florida populations. The feet show several specializations for life in the water. The skull is large and flattened, and is short at the front.
Histiostomatidae is a family of mites in the clade Astigmata.
Gigantolaelaps is a genus of mites in the family Laelapidae. It is found in the fur of cricetid rodents, most often from the tribe Oryzomyini, from South America north to the southern United States. They are large (>1 mm) and darkly colored and have a complex life cycle.
Gigantolaelaps mattogrossensis is a mite from the Americas. It has been found on the marsh rice rat, hispid cotton rat, black rat, brown rat, and white-footed mouse in the United States. In Venezuela, it has been recorded from Holochilus brasiliensis, Sigmodon hirsutus, and Marmosa robinsoni. In Argentina, it has been found on Scapteromys aquaticus, Oligoryzomys flavescens, and Holochilus brasiliensis. The North American form was first described as a separate species, Gigantolaelaps cricetidarum, and is still occasionally considered as such.
Androlaelaps fahrenholzi is a species of mite in the genus Androlaelaps of the family Laelapidae. It occurs throughout the contiguous United States, where it has been recorded on the following mammals:
Euschoengastia peromysci is a mite in the genus Euschoengastia of the family Trombiculidae. Recorded hosts include the cotton mouse and marsh rice rat in Georgia; the northern short-tailed shrew, northern red-backed vole, northern flying squirrel, rock vole, white-footed mouse, and deermouse in Tennessee; and northern red-backed vole, southern bog lemming, masked shrew, and eastern red squirrel in North Carolina, among others.
Euschoengastia setosa is a mite in the genus Euschoengastia of the family Trombiculidae that mostly parasitizes small rodents and lagomorphs. Recorded hosts include marsh rice rat in Georgia; the deermouse in Tennessee; and the eastern red squirrel in North Carolina, among others.
Haemogamasus is a genus of mites in the family Haemogamasidae. In North America, they mostly infect rodents, in addition to other small mammals such as shrews, talpids, and Virginia opossums.
Laelaps manguinhosi is a species of parasitic mite in the family Laelapidae. In the United States, it has been found on the marsh rice rat in Florida, Texas, and South Carolina. Other recorded hosts include the sigmodontine rodents Scapteromys aquaticus, Akodon azarae, Oligoryzomys flavescens, and Holochilus brasiliensis in Argentina and Oryzomys couesi and Handleyomys melanotis in Mexico. In Venezuela, it mainly infects the oryzomyines Holochilus sciureus and Nectomys, but it has also been recorded on a variety of other mammals and even on a bird. A separate subspecies, Laelaps manguinhosi calvescens, has been described from the ichthyomyine rodent Neusticomys venezuelae.
Listrophorus is a genus of parasitic mites in the family Listrophoridae. North American species with their hosts include:
Listrophoridae is a family of mites in the suborder Psoroptidia of the order Sarcoptiformes. The family contains small, long mites specialized for grasping the hairs of mammals. North American genera include:
Oryzomysia oryzomys is a parasitic mite in the genus Oryzomysia of the family Atopomelidae. It has been found on the marsh rice rat in Georgia. It was formerly known as Chirodiscoides oryzomys in the family Listrophoridae, but was later transferred to the atopomelid genus Oryzomysia.
Prolistrophorus bakeri is a parasitic mite in the genus Prolistrophorus. Together with the Argentine P. hirstianus, it forms the subgenus Beprolistrophorus. P. bakeri has been found on the hispid cotton rat, marsh rice rat, and cotton mouse in Georgia, South Carolina, Texas, and Florida and on Oryzomys couesi in Colima. It was formerly placed in the genus Listrophorus.
Radfordia palustris is a species of mite in the subgenus Hesperomyobia of the genus Radfordia. It has been recorded on the marsh rice rat in Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina.
Laelaps is a genus of common parasitic mites in the family Laelapidae. Species, with their hosts, include:
Otopheidomenidae is a family of mites in the order Mesostigmata.
Halarachnidae is a small family of mites in the order Mesostigmata.
Fritz S. Lukoschus (1919–1987) was a German zoologist studying the systematics and biology of the Acari. Over the course of his career he published over 200 scientific articles, describing more than 90 species new for science. Lukoschus was born in April 1919 in Grabsten in April 1919. He obtained his PhD in 1946 from the University of Göttingen on a thesis on the development of castes in the European honey bee. After working at the University of Göttingen until 1953, he worked at several institutions before being recruited by the Catholic University of Nijmegen in 1962 where he stayed until his retirement in 1984. Lukoschus died suddenly in August 1987. The genera Lukoschus and Lukoschuscoptes were named after him.
