Feeding strategies and competition between terrestrial Haemadipsa leeches (Euhirudinea: Arhynchobdellida) in Danum Valley rainforest (Borneo, Sabah)

Haemadipsid leeches are among the most successful terrestrial invertebrates in Bornean rainforests. They are very common ectoparasites of vertebrates, and their abundance has facilitated the conduction of numerous projects in the fields of ecology, zoogeography and taxonomy. We undertook research on two species inhabiting lowland dipterocarp forest, Haemadipsa picta Moore, 1929 and Haemadipsa subagilis (Moore, 1929), in order to address the following questions: (a) is there a difference in leech abundance between trails and off-trails?; (b) is ambush location dependent on specimen size or is s... Mehr ...

Verfasser: Gąsiorek, Piotr
Różycka, Hanna
Dokumenttyp: model:article
Schlagwörter: parazitismus / parasitism / ectoparasites / foraging behaviour / Haemadipsidae / haematophagy / 2 / 59
Sprache: unknown
Permalink: https://search.fid-benelux.de/Record/base-26889733
Datenquelle: BASE; Originalkatalog
Powered By: BASE
Link(s) : https://kramerius.lib.cas.cz/view/uuid:623e3c6d-1660-46fa-92e3-6a6cf292a90e

Haemadipsid leeches are among the most successful terrestrial invertebrates in Bornean rainforests. They are very common ectoparasites of vertebrates, and their abundance has facilitated the conduction of numerous projects in the fields of ecology, zoogeography and taxonomy. We undertook research on two species inhabiting lowland dipterocarp forest, Haemadipsa picta Moore, 1929 and Haemadipsa subagilis (Moore, 1929), in order to address the following questions: (a) is there a difference in leech abundance between trails and off-trails?; (b) is ambush location dependent on specimen size or is species-specific?; (c) is intra- and interspecific competition limited by differences in foraging behaviours or vertical niche partitioning? Our results clearly show that H. picta is more abundant on trails than on off-trails and is vertically dispersed within the understory; the size of a specimen is strongly correlated with plant height. Haemadipsa subagilis was found not to exhibit such patterns. We suggest a possible lowering of interspecific competition between these species as a result of: (i) size-dependent dispersion of H. picta (together with reduction of intraspecific competition); and (ii) habitat specialisation of H. subagilis. Moreover, we provide new observations on their foraging behaviour. ; Piotr Gąsiorek, Hanna Różycka. ; Obsahuje bibliografii