CHARACTERIZATION OF MITE PARASITISM OF EASTERN COLLARED LIZARDS (CROTAPHYTUS COLLARIS) IN THE KANSAS FLINT HILLS

The goals of this research were to 1) quantify any relationships between the number of trombiculid chigger mites and the sex or body condition of individual eastern collared lizards (Crotaphytus collaris), and 2) determine whether habitat has an effect on parasite load. Collared lizards were sampled from an artificial habitat and a natural habitat in northeastern Kansas. The habitat at Tuttle Creek Dam (Tuttle) is predominantly made up of large, artificially placed rocks with few scattered areas of herbaceous plants. The habitat of Konza Prairie Biological Station (Konza) is made up of naturally exposed rock with vertical ledges up to 1.5 m in height, surrounded largely by grasses and shrubs, with a few areas covered by large trees. Lizards at Tuttle were found to have significantly fewer mites than did lizards on Konza. There was no relationship between parasite load and body condition for lizards at either site. There was also no significant difference in mite count between males and females at Tuttle. However, males at Konza had significantly higher mite counts than did females. These results potentially link parasite load to the types of plants that make up the habitat of eastern collared lizards.