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Sea lice possibly survive on fish that remain in the estuaries or they transfer to an as yet unknown alternate host to spend the winter. Smolt get infected with sea lice larvae, or even possibly adults, when they enter the estuaries in the spring. How sea lice distribute between fish in the wild also is not known.
Some animals are known to host up to fifteen different species, although one to three is typical for mammals, and two to six for birds. Lice generally cannot survive for long if removed from their host. [5] If their host dies, lice can opportunistically use phoresis to hitch a ride on a fly and attempt to find a new host. [6]
Because some marine mammals, such as fur seals, have a layer of air trapped under their waterproof coats that insulates them against cold water, their lice actually live in a mostly dry, warm habitat. Other mammals have blubber for insulation, so their skin is in contact with the water; their lice parasites live in a cold aquatic environment. [2]
Whale lice attach themselves to the host body in places that protect them from water currents, so they can be found in natural body openings and in wounds; with baleen whales they are found primarily on the head and in the ventral pleats. Around 7,500 whale lice live on a single whale. [3]
Argulus foliaceus. Argulus foliaceus, also known as the common fish louse, is a species of fish lice in the family Argulidae. [1] It is "the most common and widespread native argulid in the Palaearctic" [2] and "one of the most widespread crustacean ectoparasites of freshwater fish in the world", considering its distribution and range of hosts. [3]
Adults live for up to 30 days. [6] Crab lice feed exclusively on blood, and take a blood meal 4–5 times daily. Outside the host they can survive for 24–48 hours. Crab lice are transmitted from person to person most commonly via sexual contact, although fomites (bedding, clothing) may play a minor role in their transmission. [7]
Aquatic insects or water insects live some portion of their life cycle in the water. They feed in the same ways as other insects . Some diving insects, such as predatory diving beetles , can hunt for food underwater where land-living insects cannot compete .
Mallophaga are often adapted to live on a specific part of their host and typically spend their entire lives on a single host. They can only survive for about three days after their host has died, and they typically use phoresis, which is hitching a ride from a fly, as an attempt to reach a new host. Mallophaga may also use the phoresis to ...