THE FLEAS OF NORTH AMERICA 69 



Ceratophyllus gallinae (Schrank) 



Pulex gallinae Schrank, 1803, Fauna Boica, v. 3. p. 195. 

 Pulex avium Taschenberg, 1880, Die Flohe. p. 70, pi. 2, figs. 14-14a. 

 Ceratophyllus gibsoni C. Fox, 1914, U. S. Pub. Health Serv. Hyg. Lab. Bui. 

 97: 15, pi. 5, figs. 4-5. (New synonymy.) 



Coiype hosts. — "Hiihnern, Mausen, Fledermausen, Maulwiirfen." 



Type locality. — Not indicated. 



Range. — In Xorth America known from the eastern part of the 

 United States and southeastern Canada. 



This species is at times a rather serious pest of chickens and is now 

 found in several of the Northern States east of the Great Plains and 

 in the southeastern part of Canada. It was introduced into North 

 America apparently early in the present century, for our first record 

 of it (under the name of Ceratophyllus gibsoni C. Fox) was based 

 on specimens taken in a hen house at Ottawa, Canada, July 13, 1909. 

 A few years later the species appeared in hen houses in the northeast- 

 ern part of the United States. 



For a number of years after gallinae was encountered in North 

 America it was not positively identified. In 1924 one of the present 

 writers (Ewing. 7 J, p. 3J$) made direct comparisons between speci- 

 mens taken in this country and those taken in Europe and positively 

 identified them as gallinae. In this same paper (p. 344) Cerato- 

 phylhis gibsoni C. Fox was listed as a distinct species, with this 

 statement: 



* * * The receptaculum senainis is short and stout and not at all like that 

 of either gallinae or niger; however, the type specimens of gibsoni are con- 

 siderably distorted, as if they had been boiled too long in caustic. In view 

 of this condition of the specimens some allowance should be made for the 

 distortion of the receptaculum seminis. Until more records are obtained in 

 the eastern part of Xorth America for chicken infesting Ceratophylli the 

 sinking of this species can hardly be justified. 



Since this was written further records of gallinae, both from 

 chickens and from other hosts, have been made, but in no case have 

 specimens showing the characteristics attributed to gibsoni been 

 taken. Under these circumstances it appears that the synonymizing 

 of gibsoni is justified. 



Wagner (SO, p. 13), in his catalogue of 1930, indicates several 

 synonyms of this species. 



Ceratophyllus garei Rothschild 



(Fig. 7, E) 



Ceratophyllus garei Rothschild, 1902, Ent. Monthly Mag. (2) 13: 225, pi. 4, 



figs. 1-3. 

 Ceratophyllus utahensis Chapin, 1919, Brooklyn Ent. Soc. Bui. 14: 60. 



Type host. — "Nest of a waterhen (Gallinula chloropus) ." 



Type locality. — Near Tring, England. 



Range. — In North America known from western part of the United 

 States, Canada, and Alaska. 



The male of Ceratophyllus garei is very similar to the males of 

 gallinae and niger, but the manubrium of the clasper is broader. 

 The female of C. garei is very distinct in that the head of the recepta- 

 culum seminis is more nearly oblong than cylindrical and hence is 

 not typical for the genus Ceratophyllus. 



