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For Insects, Spiders & Their Kin
For the United States & Canada
Photo#2130779
Spiny Rat Louse - Polyplax

Spiny Rat Louse - Polyplax
Warsaw, Kosciusko County, Indiana, USA
June 16, 2022
Size: 1 mm
Collected from the rump of a freshly killed subadult female brown rat. These lice have thus far been found on every rat collected from my farm this year, but are usually very difficult to find until they begin to evacuate the host several hours after death. When they move, these lice frequently shake their heads, and will infrequently rear upwards.

Taken at 200x magnification.