Ectoparasites of auks (alcidae) at the Gannet Islands, Labrador : diversity, ecology and host-parasite interactions

Abstract

In seabirds, ectoparasites have been shown to cause everything from minor irritation and disease transmission to nest-desertion and death of both adults and chicks. I undertook my study to provide a better understanding of ectoparasite community structure using four auks and their ectoparasites as a model, and to attempt to derive some general principles that might be responsible for the persistence of ectoparasites on their seabird hosts. -- My thesis is presented in five chapters. The present chapter has summarized the rationale and background encompassing the objectives of the study and introduces the major group to which the host species in my study belong. Chapters 2, 3 and 4 are presented in the format of papers to be sent for publication in international, peer-reviewed, scientific journals. The quantifications and statistical analyses are different in each chapter and references are made to other chapters wherever appropriate. Chapter 5 summarizes the findings of Chapters 2, 3 and 4 in a more generalized form with suggestions for possible future research.