Parasites

Abstract

The pests to be considered in this chapter comprise several quite different types of insects as well as mites and ticks. They are all parasitic on man and are grouped together because this habit causes them to be of medical and hygienic significance. They will be arranged, primarily, according to the type of control measures they require, which depends on the closeness of their association with the host. Pests such as the itch mite, the crab louse and head louse live in continual proximity to the skin and require personal disinfestation to destroy them. On the other hand, fleas and bed bugs, which visit the host only at intervals, demand the disinfestation of furniture and buildings. A compromise will be attempted between this empirical arrangement according to methods of control and certain other considerations such as the relative importance and systematic relationships of the pests concerned.