01687nas a2200157   4500008004100000245013400041210006900175260012400244300001200368490000700380520096700387653001001354100001301364700001501377856013701392       2005                        eng d00aPrevalence and colonization of Placobdella on two species of freshwater turtles (Graptemys geographica and Sternotherus odoratus)0 aPrevalence and colonization of Placobdella on two species of fre  aC/O ROBERT D ALDRIDGE, ST LOUIS UNIV, DEPT BIOLOGY, 3507 LACLEDE, ST LOUIS, MO 63103 USAbSOC STUDY AMPHIBIANS REPTILES  a284-2870 v393 aIt is generally accepted that bottom-dwelling turtles have a higher ectoparasite load than turtles that bask aerially because of effects of desiccation on ectoparasites, especially with regard to leeches. We compared number of leeches (primarily Placobdella parasitica) on field-caught Common Musk Turtles (Sternotherus odoratus) and Common Map Turtles (Graptemys geographica). The bottom-dwelling species S. odoratus had more than 20 times the number of leeches than the aerial-basking species G. geographica. We then exposed cleaned (leech-free) turtles to leeches in mesocosms (cattle tanks) to measure the rate of colonization. In this experiment, S. odoratus had more than four times the number of leeches as G. geographica after 24 h of exposure, even though G. geographica were unable to bask under these experimental conditions. We suggest that desiccation threat alone does not explain the species-specific differences in leech loads on aquatic turtles.10aleech1 aRyan, TJ1 aLambert, A  uhttps://nematoda.myspecies.info/content/prevalence-and-colonization-placobdella-two-species-freshwater-turtles-graptemys-geographica