New data on Mallophaga of the pelicans nesting at the Hrecisca colony in Romania

On 17 August 2004, while ringing 39 White Pelican (Pelecanus onocrotalus) chicks, J. B. Kiss found chewing lice (Mallophaga) on each bird, and for identification purposes he collected the lice found from one individual. However, he did not find a single chewing louse on any of the 20 Dalmatian Pelicans (P. crispus) in the same colony. Our earlier studies showed that Dalmatian Pelicans, mostly breeding in mixed colonies, were usually free of lice. The lice found on one juvenile White Pelcan were identified as 8 males, 16 females and 13 larvae of the species Piagetiella titan (Piaget, 1880). All the lice had been clinging in clusters to the pharynx and to the internal side of the throat pouch. If alarmed, both adult and juvenile pelicans regurgitate their food, which is later eaten again by gthe same or another individual. Thus, Mallophaga can get from the pharynx or the throat pouch of one bird into another. The infection can thus indirectly spread not only from parent to offspring. Our future studies will aim to explore the reason why Dalmation Pelicans are not infected.